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It's "crunch time", says Hayden
If Nicky Hayden is feeling the pressure of trying to stay at the zenith of the MotoGP standings, the Kentuckian is not letting it show ahead of the Japanese GP this weekend.
Having put himself 34 points clear top with victory at Laguna Seca, Hayden has since failed to make the podium in the last three races while Valentino Rossi has been in the top three on each occasion, reducing the gap to just 21 points.
Yet while the Honda rider admits that with just three races left it is certainly "crunch time" in the championship, he insists he is looking forward to the forthcoming race at the Montegi circuit, in spite of his inconsistent record there.
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He explained: "I got third place here in my rookie year, though I've had some weaker results since and struggled a bit, so I'm planning to do better for my Japanese fans this year.
"I always get lots of support in Japan and I'm gonna be really trying to make my supporters proud and the guys in my team because they've been working really hard. It's Honda's home race too so it would be nice to give the Honda fans something to shout about."
Reflecting on last weekend's Australian GP, the 25-year-old insisted he enjoyed the rain swept battle for the final podium place, even if he did lose out to Rossi in the end.
Last year's Japanese GP saw Hayden get off to a poor start and end the first lap down in 16th place, but he fought back bravely to take fifth in the end and a similarly sterling effort will be required of him again this weekend.
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