Soup columnist Hayden won the 600 Supersport crown this season.

Going into Laguna for the final round, I was definitely feeling the pressure, going for the championship. I'd never been in the position before where I was leading a championship, so it was different from what I was used to. Plus, the guys made so many points up on me the last couple of races, I definitely had to race for it, which made it easier, because I couldn't just sandbag and bring it home.

Once we got to the race, it just seemed like a race. Saturday practice went okay. I was struggling with a few things on the 600. We had pretty good settings from when we were there the last time. So many guys were so close, I was getting worried. After qualifying—which I ended up on the second row—I was starting to get a bit nervous again, because I really haven't been on the second row, and my starts have been terrible this year. I was thinking, "I'm going to have to get the start of my life tomorrow. If not, I've got my work cut out for me."

Sunday morning, we actually scrubbed tires. I don't usually do that, but I've been having some problems this year with a few tires not what I want them to be in the race, so I didn't want to take any chances on the race on Sunday. So we did that. After that, I felt ready. To be honest with you, after practice, I was thinking about the race so much, I just went in the truck and watched the NFL all day. That's about all I did until the race. I figured I'd try something else, instead of just sitting there and studying the track map like I usually do. I'm in a fantasy league with my buddies, so I just sat in the truck and did my fantasy football until it was almost time for the race. But I'd be lying if I said I wasn't still thinking about it a lot.

I got a pretty good start. I was relieved, because I could see the leaders in front of me. I knew the race was going to be nuts, because there were so many guys going for their first win, championship implications on the line, and stuff like that. There were just people all over the place.

I think I was running third one time, and Hacking and Josh Hayes were right in front of me. I was trying to ease a little closer to them, which I was pretty close. I could see those two dicing it up pretty good. Eventually, Josh had a pretty nasty little spill there. So they had to red flag the race, which I could not believe it. I was just so ready for the race to be over. So we did the sighting lap for the re-start, and then they stopped us on the grid because it was dirty, and then they started acting like they were going to put it after the Superbike race. By this time, I'm about to go nuts. I'm just ready for it to be over with.

Then with about four laps to go, I was still running second, and I'm headed up to the Corkscrew, and I could hear somebody's rear brake lock up. It's still locked up, still locked up, and I'm thinking, "Man, this don't sound very good." As I started to turn into the Corkscrew, I kind of looked over my shoulder and I saw somebody way on the inside, coming in way too fast. I stood the bike up, and we kind of got together, and I almost ran off. A couple of guys got by me, and Hacking got by me, and it changed the whole outlook of the race. At that point, Hacking was in front of me with a couple of people between us. I couldn't believe what just happened. I couldn't believe somebody would take that big of a chance with somebody going for a championship like that. So I kind of put my head down, and started trying to reel the guys back in. There was only four laps to go, and I could kind of see Jamie was catching Josh just a little bit. I was kind of worried. Also, my team had told me they would put P1 on the far right side of my pit board if I was in a position to win the championship. It was the white flag lap, and I still never got the P1 on there. The guys didn't want to put it on there, because Hacking was catching Herrin, and they wanted me to keep charging and not fall back. So the last lap I made a pass in the Corkscrew, which I really didn't need to, and I think the last lap was my fastest lap of the day.

When I came across the finish line, I knew I was the champ. It was a great feeling. All those hard bicycle riding days, those Sundays when you don't want to get out of bed and train, it was all worth it. I was just glad it was over. I think I put too much pressure on myself, and maybe took some of the fun out of it.

Afterwards, I was just excited. I couldn't really believe it, that I was the champ, after what I came from a few years ago. After my little stint at the team that I was on before Kawasaki, heck, I never thought I'd win a race, let alone a championship. It didn't really sink in until I got back to my hotel that night. I went out with my team Sunday night and had a few beers, but when I got back to the hotel, that's when it really sank in, what I'd done. It was definitely a big, emotional time for me. I was just excited.

I feel like I learned a lot more than anything. I was too conservative those last couple of races, and let those guys close up. Next time, I think I know what I have to do different. My mechanics and those guys, most of them have been with me the last four years. To repay them, put a smile on their face... Kawasaki picked me up four years ago when I was as low as you can get. So to repay them with a championship is nice. There are just so many people to thank for getting me to that point my career, the list could go on for days. Obviously, it starts first with my whole family. My mom and dad gave up everything when I was younger to let me go race. Like I said after the race, my brothers, for putting up with me whenever I was younger and hard to deal with—and can still be at times. It was only about four years ago that they'd be out training and I'd be goofing off. They really helped lead me in the right direction, where they could've very easily just given up on me. Which they probably should have, but they didn't. They're always pushing me, every day, helping me. Both of them, leading into the championship, they both gave me advice here and there, which was pretty nice. Definitely big thanks to them, because they are a huge part of my career. For every little thing - training, advice, taking me riding when I was little, just so many things.

There's just so many people to thank. It's a dream come true, and hopefully there'll be many more, so we've just got to keep our head down. I definitely want to thank my crew. I said this after the race, and I meant it. If sleeping on the bench with the bikes would give me a tenth of a second on race day, I think every one of them would be sleeping on the bench. Just for a tenth. That's how much they support me, that's how much they work. So I was glad for them. I'll start with Dan Fahie. He's one of the guys who made me a smarter rider than I was before I started racing at Kawasaki. He really showed me the way. Sometimes I can get really frustrated and not want to look at the data, I just want to go out there and ride the wheels off of them, and that's obviously not going to work. He did so much for me my whole career, even before I went to Kawasaki. When I'd go to California for the winter to train, he helped me on the bike and off it. There's really no way to repay him.

Kenny Hunter, that guy, he's been with me for the last four years. He's done every little thing I've ever asked him. Definitely a hard worker. I'm really glad he's on my side. J.J., my other chassis guy, he's another awfully hard worker. He kind of keeps everybody loose and laughing. I think everybody needs that once in a while, to keep it fun. But he's a serious guy, too. Rick, I've got to thank him for building me the fastest 600 motors all year. Another guy who's kind of quiet, but just gets the job done. We didn't have any mechanical DNFs on the 600, we always had the fastest bike. So a big thanks to him. Clint Simmons, one of my high school buddies, he's been helping me out since I was at Chaparral, going to the races with me ever since then. He's definitely one of the people I could always count on for support when I was struggling. He helped me flat- tracking, roadracing, just a good guy I could always fall back on, another hard worker. He was always there, and helped make the team click.

Hopefully this isn't it for us. I'm signed up for two more years with Kawasaki. I'm really excited about that. I feel like my team's awesome. I feel like it's one of the best teams in the paddock. I feel like I've got one of the best crews. We've got a new Superbike coming out, which we're excited to get our hands on. Hopefully we can close the gap to the two guys in front of us.

After the season was over, I was looking for a break. I was stressed a little too much about the championship. I went to Vegas for the dealer show, which was okay. I'm not quite the gambler. I played a little bit of blackjack. I didn't try to strike gold or anything, because I know Vegas isn't keeping all those lights on from people going there and getting rich. I hung out with Jamie one night and had fun. I was really only there for a couple of days. I got to see the new ZX-10, so that was fun.

I'm not sure when our first test is. Definitely, we're all excited about the new bike. I'm sure as soon as the team gets their hands on it and gets it into riding shape, we'll be testing it somewhere and trying to get ready to go for next year. You can't ever take it too easy.