Ducati Team head to Hayden's home track

The American earned his first Ducati podium at Indianapolis in 2009. This year, he will be aboard the GP11.1 on Friday, just like his teammate Valentino Rossi. The Italian won his Indianapolis debut in 2008, and although the track isn?t among his absolute favorites, he and his team would like to confirm their recent progress with the Desmosedici?s setup. Rossi is particularly fond of racing in the United States, and like Hayden, he has many fans there that will join the many American Ducatisti that make the annual trip to "Ducati Island".

Nicky Hayden:
?We?re going to Indy, and we?ll see what the new track surface does. I?ve ridden it, and the bumps are definitely gone, although I?d say it will take some time on Friday to clean it up and get some rubber down. I?m looking forward to this event. I always enjoy racing at home in front of friends and family, but I need to go there and focus on my job. I want to try to do a good result while also having fun and enjoying the weekend. The team has worked really hard to get me the opportunity to ride this new bike, and now it?s up to me to try and pay them back with a good result.?

Valentino Rossi:
?Indy is a difficult circuit, and although it?s not exactly one of my favorites, we?ll see how we perform there with the Ducati. They resurfaced part of the track, so the conditions should certainly be better from that point of view. We made a little progress with the GP11.1?s setup during the Brno GP, and we?ll see if we can confirm them at this next race. Anyway, racing in America is always nice for me, as I enjoy both the atmosphere and the fans, who are always very passionate. On the other hand, I?m very sorry that we?ll be missing someone who undoubtedly followed our sport, though not at the track: Claudio Castiglioni was very passionate and he did a lot for the motorcycle world, and for me in particular when he helped me get started in racing in Sport Production 125 when I was 14.?

Ducati Team press release

Source: http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2011/Ducti+preview+Indy

Jurgen van den Goorbergh Sylvain Guintoli Noriyuki Haga Tetsuya Harada