Hayden still struggling with riding style
World champion Nicky Hayden was downcast after falling back to seventh in the Spanish Grand Prix, admitting that he is still far from comfortable with the style required by the new 800cc bikes
Hayden has struggled for pace since the start of pre-season testing, having found his riding style fundamentally ill-suited to the less powerful new machines.
It looked like his fortunes might be improving when he vaulted from 11th on the grid to fourth on the first lap at Jerez, but he was unable to keep up with the leaders and fell to sixth by the end of the race.
"It's tough," he conceded in an interview with BBC televsion. "The pace is fast, the other guys are really going fast right now.
"I'm just really struggling with the same things I struggled with since I got on it (the 800cc bike). I just really can't find an answer to get the front to steer for me.
"The bottom line is, we ain't going fast enough."
Hayden pledged to keep working with his Repsol Honda team to find a solution.
"I've got a lot of work to do, and have to work with my team, I've got some good guys here," he said.
"It's going to be a long few weeks. Thanks to my team for working hard. Hopefully we'll get to Turkey and get up front."
Share Or Save This Story
Hamilton accepts blame for incident with Albon in F1 Brazilian GP
Ferrari drivers called to F1 stewards over Brazilian GP collision
Will Alonso's Indy failure end the age of versatility?
Nicky Hayden: Remembering motorsport's much-loved "one-off" five years on
MotoGP to retire Nicky Hayden's #69 as tribute to late 2006 champion
Driver involved in Nicky Hayden's fatal crash sentenced
WRC Canary Islands: Ogier heads Toyota 1-2-3-4-5 after dominant Friday
Why Marquez can only "survive" in Spanish GP despite return to full fitness
What Apple TV’s F1® coverage delivers for fans in the U.S.
What other tracks should return to the F1 calendar? Our writers have their say
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments