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Four American riders will compete at the elite level of worldwide motorcycle racing in 2010, including the Red Bull Indianapolis GP on Aug. 27-29 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
2006 World Champion Nicky Hayden, veteran Colin Edwards and rookie Ben Spies will represent the U.S. at the pinnacle of the sport, the MotoGP class. Rookie Kenny Noyes will race in the newest class in the World Championship, Moto2.
Hayden, from Owensboro, Ky., will return to the Ducati Team for the second consecutive season. He finished third in the Red Bull Indianapolis GP in August 2009, his second straight podium finish in the event. Hayden's teammate will be 2007 World Champion Casey Stoner, as Ducati is the only team on the grid comprised of two MotoGP World Champions.
Edwards, from Conroe, Texas, will team up with fellow Texan Spies to form "Team Texas" on the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 team. It will be the third consecutive year with the privateer team for Edwards. He finished fifth in the MotoGP standings last season, the best effort by a non-factory rider.
Spies, from Longview, Texas, comes to MotoGP full time in the tire tracks of four consecutive championship seasons. He won the AMA Superbike title three straight years from 2006-08 and then stunned the international motorcycle establishment by winning the Superbike World Championship as a rookie in 2009.
The last time two Americans were teammates in the premier class was 2005, when 2000 World Champion Kenny Roberts Jr. and John Hopkins paired for Suzuki.
Noyes will race in the new Moto2 class for the Jack & Jones by A. Banderas team, which includes Hollywood star and lifelong motorcycle enthusiast Antonio Banderas as a partner. Noyes arrives at the world level after finishing fourth in 2009 in the Spanish 1000cc Extreme Championship with a victory and three other podium finishes.
Noyes was born in Barcelona, Spain, to American parents, as his father was a championship-winning rider in Spanish-based series. But the family moved back to America when Noyes was a teenager, and he began his racing career on California dirt tracks in 1997. He began road racing in Spain in 2001 and also has road-raced in AMA and World Supersport competition.
The Moto2 class replaces the 250cc class starting this season. Moto2 bikes feature 600cc engines, a closer size to the 800cc powerplants used in the premier MotoGP class.
Both the Moto2 and 125cc classes will compete along with the MotoGP class at the Red Bull Indianapolis GP on Aug. 27-29 at IMS.
The 2010 MotoGP season opens April 11 with the Grand Prix of Qatar.