Nicky Hayden rode a Reps🐽ol Honda for the first time since 2008 during this mo🌱rning's wet opening practice session for the Australian MotoGP at Phillip Island.

Hayden spent the opening six years of his MotoGP career ✅at the factory Honda team, from 2003-2008, winning the wo💮rld championship in 2006.

After riding for Ducati and then Aspar, the 35-year-old American switched to World Superbike at the end of last season. He has bee🤡n called-up by his old team following Dani Pedrosa's collarbone injury last weekend at Motegi.

The American was ten𝓡th fastest in FP1, 2.055s from pace setter Cal Crutchlow and within 1.5s of team-mate and newly crowned triple world champion Marc Marquez.

Hayden has already made one previous Moto✃GP start this season, standing in at Marc VDS for Aragon, where he finished 15th in his first race on the new generation Michelin tyres and unified ECU.

The #69 will expect to beat that result at one of his favourite circuitꦿs this weekend.