Source: Supplied.

American Nicky Hayden was on par for a solid top 10 result in a one-off return to Repsol Honda at the Michelin Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix when he was on the wrong end of contact with home hero Jack Miller.

Filling in for Dani Pedrosa on the factory RC213V, Hayden was bumped by an aggressive Miller on the penultimate lap at Phillip Island while in the scrap for seventh, causing him to crash at turn four.

The 35-year-old managed to remount and finish the race at the rear of the field in 17th, but said it was a racing incident that resulted in contact between the Honda duo. It was a disappointing end to an otherwise positive reunion at Repsol Honda.

“It’s been a very challenging weekend with so many changes of conditions, but finally we at least got a few laps in the dry in the warm-up,” the 2006 world champion reflected. “At the beginning of the race it was a little bit tough to get my rhythm, but as it went on I started feeling better and better.

“I was in a group fighting for seventh position and I was quite enjoying the battle. Everybody was going back and forth and I felt good, I felt like I had the best tyres left in that group and that I could win that battle, but then in the Honda hairpin, Jack knocked me down.

“That’s racing – I didn’t actually see him, I just felt him when it was too late to do anything. But that’s racing, especially in a group like that, where it makes a big difference winning the battle and getting seventh or losing it and finishing out the top 10.

“After qualifying seventh on the grid and having not ridden the bike until Friday morning, seventh place would’ve been a very respectable result. Nonetheless, I’ve enjoyed the weekend, it’s been a pleasure to come back on the Repsol Honda team and ride this bike again. It was awesome and I feel I did a decent job, I just would’ve liked to finish it off with a good result.”

Hayden will now revert his attention to Qatar’s final round of the Superbike World Championship this weekend at the Losail Circuit, while it’s expected Honda will call Hiroshi Aoyama back in place of Pedrosa for Sepang unless the Spaniard is declared fit to ride.