Josh Hayes, hailing from Mississippi, made his Grand Prix debut at the age of 36. The American rider won the AMA Superbike Championship in 2010 and 2011, is a two-time AMA Formula Xtreme champion, and won the AM Superstock Championship in 2003. Hayes made his MotoGP debut at the final 2011 round at Valencia as a replacement rider for an injured Colin Edwards on the Tech3 Yamaha team, finishing in the top ten.