Departing Repsol Honda rider
Nicky Hayden has responded to the recent claims made by team-mate Dani Pedrosa's manager Alberto Puig.
During a scathing attack on the official
MotoGP website, Puig stated that the 2006 world champion used to 'copy' Pedrosa's settings - prior to the Spaniard's tyre change - because he can't set-up a bike himself, was never a rival to Pedrosa and is a 'hypocrite' for claiming that he doesn't have a problem with Dani after their 2006 Portuguese GP clash.
Puig's words came shortly after comments from Hayden in a Spanish 'paper, in which the #69 claimed that Puig runs Repsol Honda.
Speaking on the eve of this weekend's Malaysian Grand Prix, Hayden was asked about Puig's comments - and also what he himself had said in the Spanish interview.
"I don't want to go back into having a cat fight, with words back and forth with this guy, and defend everything he said [about me]," smiled the 2009 Ducati Marlboro rider, before standing by his assertion that Puig controls Repsol Honda.
"I'm not even sure what I said once it got translated [into Spanish]. I think I said something just about the fact that Puig basically runs our team, runs HRC at the moment. I really believe that.
"I do think Yamano has done a great job as a team manager - and that guy is in a tough, tough spot! I know he's got a lot of heat coming at him from all directions!
"That's basically what I said... I need to quit being a hypocrite I guess!" he joked, referring to one of Puig's claims.
Nevertheless, Hayden admitted he was angry at Puig's comments that he had copied Pedrosa's set-up prior to the garage split.
Hayden has used the pneumatic-valve engine from round eight at
Donington Park, while Pedrosa remained on the valve-spring design until
Indianapolis (round 14).
"The stuff he said about sharing data is a joke and that's why I'm mad," said Hayden. "I haven't seen Pedrosa's data for a long time. The truth is he sees everybody's data. Let's be clear about that. If it's me fastest or Dovizioso fastest, he sees everything."
