To say that young John Hopkins has had a difficult year so far with the Suzuki MotoGP team would be a gross understatement. Part of it is probably his own fault. When a MotoGP star decides to race in a Supercross “Crossover Challenge” just a short time before his real job starts, and proceeds to break both of his ankles, you have mixed feelings. You feel sorry for him, but also a bit angry that you won’t see him at his best (nor will his team) when the real racing starts.
Hopkins did break both of his ankles in that pre-season supercross folly. He clearly wasn’t at his best when the MotoGP season started, having missed valuable testing and being less than 100% physically. As he rounded into form, however, he was involved in an accident (not his fault) at Le Mans. He broke his hand, and then returned to racing too quickly and re-broke that hand while practicing for the Catalunya MotoGP (a little headshake will break a hand that is only partially mended).
He now lies 20th (out of 24) in the championship standings, with a measly 7 championship points after 7 rounds. With Suzuki bringing a new motor online, clearly teammate Kenny Roberts has seen the “good stuff” before Hopkins gets his hands on it. Roberts, a former World Champion for Suzuki, probably deserves it, but this is just another hurdle for Hopkins to overcome in regaining his confidence.
With 9 races left, Hopkins must realize he needs to dig deep and consistently get into the top 10. The Suzuki is finally competitive, and the Bridgestone tires are getting better every week (witness Makoto Tamada’s victory in the last MotoGP race aboard his Bridgestone-shod Honda). Fate (mixed with some poor judgement) has dealt Hopkins a difficult hand this year. His future employment at the MotoGP level probably depends on his performance over the next 9 races. Let’s see what he can do.