AMERICAN STAR HAYDEN EXCITED ABOUT BIG MOVE TO DUCATI

INDIANAPOLIS, Wednesday, January 14, 2009: Nicky Hayden rode for just one team during the first six seasons of his MotoGP career, so he expected that a move to a new team would bring a mix of challenge and pressure.

But as he slipped into something other than Repsol Honda leathers for the first time, 2006 MotoGP World Champion Hayden knew this season would be different. Very different.

After all, Ducati is no ordinary team in motorcycle racing. Its distinctive red machines inspire the same kind of passion worldwide as fellow Italian team Ferrari in Formula One.

“On Sunday, I tried on my Ducati leathers for the first time in an official photo session, and I felt very proud,” Hayden said. “I know what a huge opportunity I’ve been given, and I’m very grateful to Ducati, Marlboro and everybody who has shown faith in me in this new chapter of my career.

“I was immediately struck by the dedication and passion that the team is famous for and by how hard everybody is trying to make me feel comfortable in these new surroundings, as they have done helping me adapt to the bike and get the most out of it. So far everything has gone really well.”

Hayden and his new teammate, 2007 MotoGP World Champion Casey Stoner of Australia, unveiled Jan. 13 the Ducati Team Desmosedici GP9 they will race in the 2009 MotoGP season, including the second annual Red Bull Indianapolis GP on Sunday, Aug. 30 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Hayden, from Owensboro, Ky., finished second in the wet, windswept inaugural event last Sept. 14; Stoner placed fourth.

Ducati’s new bike features a major chassis change, switching to a carbon-fiber frame from Ducati’s traditional steel trellis design. While admitting that the powerful Ducati is a wilder beast to ride than his past Honda machines, Hayden enjoys the feel of the new bike.

“Obviously, I need to get faster in order to be truly competitive, but I already love the bike,” Hayden said. “I can’t say it’s easy to ride; it gets pretty loose on corner exit sometimes. But the engine is powerful and that is important, especially in a race situation. The chassis is nice and stiff, so you get plenty of feedback, and I like the feeling with the front, which is really stable in the fast corners. So far we have only had two test sessions at Valencia and Jerez, which are tight and twisty tracks, and I think that at places like Malaysia and Qatar it will be even better.”

Hayden also is pleased to team with Stoner after three increasingly acrimonious seasons with teammate Dani Pedrosa at Repsol Honda.

“I’m happy to be working with Casey,” Hayden said. “We’ve known each other for a few years now; you could say we’ve got similar backgrounds having not come up through European competition and having started out racing in dirt-track. We’re both competitive and we’re going to want to beat one another, but we’ll also work together to make a strong team.

“As far as my expectations for the season are concerned, I still have a lot of faith in myself and in what I’m capable of. The first objective is to get back to the same level I was at in 2006, challenging consistently for the podium and trying to start winning races again.”

The feeling is mutual for Stoner, who is recovering from postseason wrist surgery. He won six races last season for Ducati and finished second in the standings to inaugural Red Bull Indianapolis GP winner Valentino Rossi.

Stoner destroyed his teammate last season, Marco Melandri, who finished 17th in points. So he’s eager to work with a rider of Hayden’s MotoGP championship caliber.

“I’m really happy with the addition of Nicky to the team,” Stoner said. “He has always been kind to me, even when I was racing in the smaller classes, and I think we can work well together.

“The communication between us is great, and I think we can work together on fixing certain situations and getting the most out of the GP9 so that we can both be competitive. From my side, I also plan to be a little more aggressive this season and maybe be a bit more decisive in races where nobody seems to want to take the initiative.”

The 2009 MotoGP season starts Sunday, April 12 at the Grand Prix of Qatar. The winter test ban continues until Jan. 20, with most teams scheduled to participate in an official test Feb. 5-7 at the Sepang circuit near Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

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2009 IMS tickets: Established in 1909, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway has long prevailed as an icon of motorsports excellence. Beginning in 2009, the Speedway celebrates its Centennial Era, commemorating the 100th anniversary of the facility in 2009 and the 100th anniversary of the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race in 2011.

Tickets for the three events in 2009 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway – the 93rd Indianapolis 500, 16th Allstate 400 at the Brickyard and second Red Bull Indianapolis GP – can be ordered online at www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com at any time.