(Photo: AMA Pro Racing/Brian J Nelson)

4. Martin Cardenas

Martin Cardenas backed up his outstanding rookie Superbike effort of 2011 by demonstrating that he hadn't lost a step in middleweight action as he returned to the Daytona SportBike class he previously ruled. If anything, the Colombian was even better in his return, demonstrating increased maturity to go along with his unquestioned speed and racecraft. Whereas the Martin of old may have risked all in search of a few additional wins, this time around he sagely played the points game and walked away with the '12 SportBike title as a result. Oh, and he still managed to rack up eight wins in the process -- more than any other rider -- while extending his all-time wins mark in the class.

3. Roger Hayden

2012 was actually something of a relative disappointment for Roger Hayden, who took more time than hoped to rediscover the form he showcased late in 2011. However, he impressed mightily once he did, pushing Hayes to the brink in their Mid-Ohio duel and then winning outright from pole in Miami in what was a career day for the likable Kentuckian. Perhaps 2013 will be the year Hayden picks up where he left off and emerges a title threat.

2. Blake Young

If Hayden's year was a relative disappointment, Blake Young's was a relative disaster -- 'relative' being the key word. He was the preseason title pick of many but didn't come close to reeling in the ultimate prize. However, lost in the ugly beatdown he (and every other rider) received from title-winner Hayes in 2012 was the fact that Young still scored three wins (two in awe-inspiring fashion) and 16 podiums in all. Even with his confidence dented while his team questioned his performance, the Wisconsin native was quite clearly the second best rider in the paddock. And Young still has plenty of room to grow -- the areas in which he excels are largely thanks to natural gifts that simply can't be taught, whereas his weaknesses tend to be fundamentals that can be worked on.

1. Josh Hayes

To be fair, Hayes' advantage over the field in 2012 was so great that Young probably should have been ranked fifth with three blank spots leading up to #1. The legend-in-the-making registered the most statistically impressive season the championship has ever seen this past year, dominating in a fashion the likes of Mat Mladin could only dream about. No one was even close to Hayes; ironically if there was any criticism concerning his performance , it was the fact that he made his opponents look toothless in the process. Hayes is already well into making a case for his placement among the all-time greats, however, riders are typically defined by the rivals. At the moment, Hayes has none. Don't look for the champ to ease up now -- it's up to everybody else to step up their efforts in response.

SPEED.com Motorcycle Racing Editor Chris Martin saw Eddie Lawson win aboard a Kawasaki the first time he attended an AMA Superbike race and witnessed Ben Bostrom win a World Superbike race aboard a V&H Ducati the first time he worked one. He has written about AMA SBK, WSBK, and MotoGP for SPEED.com since 2003. Chris is now on Twitter.