Randy de Puniet Out for Seca - Roger Lee Hayden In

If you haven’t watched the German GP at Sachsenring yet, stop reading now. After crashing during Sunday’s race and breaking his tibia and fibia, Randy de Puniet will be out for the Red Bull US GP at Laguna Seca next weekend. The horrific crash leaves de Puniet in a similar situation as to what Valentino Rossi found himself in 6 weeks ago, which gives us a glimpse as to when we can likely see the shirtless Frenchman back in MotoGP racing. Who is to replace de Puniet at Seca? Why none other than Roger Lee Hayden.

Scheduled to ride an American Honda sponsored Moto2 bike at the Indianapolis GP, Roger Lee Hayden is getting reportedly getting the nod to replace Randy de Puniet at Laguna Seca for a variety of reaons.

Hayden’s resume, which includes ample laps around the Californian track, was at the top of the heap primarily because of the small candidate pool in GP racing, which sees only a handful of riders trusted with riding around on 1 of 6 motors each team has been allotted for the season. Additionally Hayden has MotoGP experience at Seca, riding a Kawasaki ZX-RR to a 10th place finish during the 2007 GP at Laguna Seca. There aren’t many GP riders who have lapped at Seca, who aren’t taking place in the GP weekend already, making Hayden an even rarer breed.

Helping make the magic happen, Hayden has also reportedly received the green light from the Kawasaki World Superbike team to ride in the Red Bull GP. The former AMA Champion will be a boon to the LCR Honda team, as he’s a recognizable rider in the American market.