Source: Supplied.

The Motul Superbike World Championship will continue at the legendary and historic Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in the United States this weekend, for round nine of the 2016 season.

The 2006 MotoGP World Champion and rookie WorldSBK race winner Nicky Hayden is heading for the US track for the first time on his Honda and anticipation is high to see the American icon in action.

As well as counting two MotoGP victories at the circuit, it also hosted the Kentucky Kid’s first win in AMA Superbike. The track suits the rider and the rider suits the track – added to home motivation for the former world champion, fireworks could be on the cards.

“It’s been a few years since I got the chance to ride at Laguna, so I can’t wait to drop down the Corkscrew again and ride at such a great track,” Hayden said. “The atmosphere there has always been amazing and there’s definitely a great vibe. I’m looking forward to it, I know people are expecting a lot from me, but I have to be realistic and know what our pace has been in dry races.

“It won’t be easy to battle with the British guys, who at the moment are kind of dominating, but we’ll go there and give it our absolute best shot. We’ll try to have some fun and most importantly get some results that me, my fans and the team can be happy about.”

Jonathan Rea is sure to want to put himself up as one of the men in Hayden’s path. The reigning champion and points leader is also conscious of the need for consistency however. An impressive feat, and with no previous wins at Laguna Seca sitting on a more than 60 point lead, Rea could roll the dice two ways – play it safe, or go for broke.

Rea’s teammate Tom Sykes had a solid weekend in Misano, and the newly re-signed Kawasaki rider now finds himself clear in the chase for P2 in the points table ahead of Chaz Davies, but the gap to Rea grew once again.

The season heads into the summer break after festivities conclude at Laguna Seca and Sykes will be looking to go all-out for glory in California, having already won at the track twice before.

Davies will be another optimist as the Welshman heads long haul once again. The Aruba.it Racing – Ducati rider did the double at Laguna Seca in 2015 and will be eager to repeat the feat on a Panigale R that has moved forward even further.

Furthermore Davies, after difficult weekends in Donington and Misano in terms of points scored, no longer counts on the freedom offered to his title rival Rea. The Ducati rider must walk the limit in his quest for the crown, beginning at Laguna Seca and sure to see the 2015 runner-up put everything behind starting to score those wins once again.

Hayden’s official Honda teammate Michael van der Mark could also play a role at Laguna Seca, having been back on the podium in Misano after some more difficult rounds, as was Aruba.it Ducati rider Davide Giugliano.

Althea BMW rider Jordi Torres qualified on the front row at Laguna on his rookie visit in 2015 and will be hoping to head his key top 10 rivals in the showdown in California – namely experienced MV Agusta rider Leon Camier and rookie Aprilia rider Lorenzo Savadori of IodaRacing, all of whom are fighting to go one further than fourth and get on the podium.

Yamaha’s Alex Lowes will be fighting fit at Laguna Seca once again too, ready to push the Pata Yamaha project even further forward, and once again joined by experienced Spaniard Nicollo Canepa on the factory R1.