Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/128409
By HENNY RAy ABRAMS PHOTOS BY GOLD & GOOSE ot much impresses Nicky Hayden. Not being on the "Today" show, not being on the "Tonight Show," not being in People magazine. And certainly not being the number-one road racer for the largest motorcycle company in the world. In 2006, Hayden takes over, from a line of champions that stretches from Spencer to Gardner to Lawson to Doohan to Criville to Rossi. Neither Hayden nor Honda will admit that he's the number-one rider, but he is. His teammate will be the precocious Spaniard Dan; Pedrosa, who was a three-time World Champion by the time he was 20. And much will be expected of Pedrosa in his first year, but more will be expected of Hayden. Following his breakthrough win in the Red Bull U.S. Gp, Hayden came of age in the second half of the 200S season, He was consistently on the podium. He raced for the win in Australia and Valencia. And he had a good run in Germany up to the red flag. The 2006 season will be his fourth. The competition will be fierce. In addition to the usual suspects Valentino Rossi, Sete Gibernau, Loris Capirossi - a new N S6 JANUARY 4,2006 • CYCLE NEWS breed is emerging. Marco Melandri leads the pack: He finished the 2006 season by winning the final two races. Pedrosa had the fastest time of the Honda riders, and third fastest overall, at the season-ending test in Malaysia. Australian Casey Stoner, on the Honda Pons, was impressively fast at the same test. As was Toni Elias, a young Spaniard who will team with Melandri on Fausto Gresini's team. And don't discount Colin Edwards. What Hayden rides could help determine his success. The smaller Honda RC21 IV that was briefly tested after the Czech GP has disappeared. Hayden isn't certain it will return. In Malaysia, he tested a chassis that Gibernau and Max Biaggi used at the end of the season, but not the new bike. Why wouldn't you use the new bike? Just don't think it's where they wanted it yet. They wanted to be racing it this year. What does it mean to be the number-one rider? I don't really think about it like that. Just doing my job, like always. Tell them what I think. They think my feedback's pretty good, obviously, or they wouldn't put so much trust in me. I just tell them what I feel, what I think, what I know. Even though I'm young, I do have quite a bit of experience. It should be a good thing for me. This year everything was based on Max [Biaggi] and his style is so different than anybody else's. Obviously, some stuff he was trying, I don't know if it would work for anybody but him. Didn't really work for him that good. What about working with Erv Kanemoto? You know, I have a ton of respect for Erv and what he's done. When he came on in the winter he was the team technical leader. It didn't last maybe one or two races. I mean it's all Max. I don't even speak with Erv, other than hello. He doesn't have anything to do with my side of the garage. Maybe his input for the new bike is where it came, but I mean I don't speak directly with Erv at all. Would you want to? Yeah, originally, yeah. Obviously growing up in America you hear a lot about Erv Kanemoto. That's like a dirt-track kid growing up hearing about Kenny Tolbert now - having him work on your bike. Sure, I honestly hoped and had big expectations to be truthful. But this ain't a magic show. A guy don't come over and wave a wand and help that much. But, yeah, I honestly I thought