Ducati Team rider Nicky Hayden ready for Gran Premio d’Italia – MotoGP news
Ducati Team rider Nicky Hayden is in Mugello for the upcoming MotoGP event of the 2011 season, the Gran Premio d’Italia TIM.
The eighth round of the 2011 season is crucial for the home team, Ducati.
Hayden said, “Even though we’re probably not at our finest moment, Mugello is going to be special for the team. I know the fans are going to come there and support us, especially now with an Italian rider. I love the track, although it’s not one where I’ve
had great results, so I’m not planning on an easy weekend. I know I’m going to have to come out there on Friday and get going.”
Hayden will make his third start at Mugello with the Ducati Team. Being a home rider for the sole Italian manufacturer in MotoGP, the race weekend is very important for the Ducati factory. The American scored a podium finish with the Honda squad in his title-winning
season of 2006.
In the 2010 season, he qualified fourth for the Italian Grand Prix but unfortunately retired after a crash on the race day.
In the ongoing 2011 season, MotoGP veteran Valentino Rossi is in the Ducati squad and will appear with all the homemade machinery.
The team is expecting a lot from its home event. The race weekend at Italy will be a busy one because the team has to prepare hard for it. The American rider is looking up to Mugello with high hopes.
This weekend, Hayden is going for the new level 2 stiff chassis which has been developed from a chassis of the 2012 prototype. It will be his first weekend with a prominent change to his GP11.
Ducati Team Manager, Vittoriano Guareschi said, “For Nicky, we'll continue working on the step 2 frame, which we didn't use in the race at Assen, where the inconsistent weather conditions prevented us from carrying out the necessary comparative tests.”
Meanwhile, Valentino Rossi is going to hit the Mugello track with his GP11.1. It will be his second race weekend aboard his new 2012 inspired Ducati Desmosedici. Since the last weekend at the Dutch TT Assen event, he has improved his pace with the new Desmosedici.
Let’s see how he fares in Italy this weekend.
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