Defending World MotoGP champion Nicky Hayden is looking to lay
some ghosts to rest this weekend when he returns to Estoril for
the Portuguese grand prix after having almost blown his 2006 title
chances at the same venue last year.
In 2006, Hayden went into the Estoril grand prix with a 12-point
lead in the championship, but, by the end of the round, Valentino
Rossi had overtaken the American at the top of the table after
Hayden's Repsol Honda team-mate Dani Pedrosa crashed into him
during the race's early stages.
At the time Hayden had been distraught at the thought of giving
up his title chances but, the American still managed to come away
with the championship after dominating last season's final round
at Valencia.
This season, it's a completely different story as a run of poor
results have already seen Hayden lose any chance of defending
the title. But, with the pressure off, Hayden believes he can earn
a good result in Portugal this time around, although, it will still
depend on the tyres that are chosen for his Honda prior to the
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