Hayden is hoping to get back on top

Nicky Hayden (centre) alongside Malaysian riders who will feature in the Malaysian Grand Prix this weekend: (L-R) Hafiza Rofa, Zulfahmi Khairuddin, Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman and Amirul Hafiq Azmi during a demo run at Dataran Putrajaya. - ART CHEN/The Star.

SEPANG: A rejuvenated Nicky Hayden is upbeat about his chances of putting up a good show for the Malaysian-backed Drive M7 Aspar Team in the Malaysian Motorcycle Grand Prix at Sepang this weekend.

The former MotoGP world champion from the United States took a risk by having his right wrist operated on half-way through the season in July to get his career back on track.

The 33-year-old missed his home race in Indianapolis and in the Czech Republic after that but showed signs of returning to form with a top-10 finish at the Australian Grand Prix in Phillip Island last week. His team-mate Hiroshi Aoyama of Japan was eighth in Phillip Island and Hayden hopes they can both score good results in front of the local support.

“Sepang has a lot of different corners, so you need a good set-up to be able to ride fast and safe. But it’s a great track and an interesting challenge for us,” said Hayden, who won the world title in 2006.

“We consider the Malaysian Grand Prix out home race for our main sponsor, so I am sure we will have a lot of support. “Hopefully, we can pay them back with a strong weekend.”

Hayden also feels that the weather could be a determining factor on the outcome of the race. “The weather plays a big part. It is unpredictable and it tends to pour towards the afternoon.

”But I like this track,” said Hayden, who has notched six fourth-placed finishes – including a top-four result in wet conditions when he was riding for Ducati in the Malaysian GP in 2012. He, however, did not finish the race last year due to engine troubles.

Hayden, who is currently 15th in the championship standings with 44 points, explained the decision to opt for surgery was to get back to his best. “Surgery is not usually a positive thing because you lose a lot of time. Sometimes it is difficult, but we know that injuries are part of our sport and we must learn to manage them. Everyone knows that my wrist has been causing me problems, especially in recent races,” he said.

“I’ve been riding with a lot of discomfort and been unable to perform at my best. We made the decision to undergo a larger operation to treat an injury that I first suffered three years ago –when I broke my scaphoid and did not heal well.”

-thestar online.