Kawasaki announce Hopkins stand-in
Added on Thursday, July 10th, 2008 by Carole Nash Editor | No Comments
Hopkins will miss the German and American Grand Prix's.
AMA Superbike star Jamie Hacking, will make his MotoGP debut at Laguna Seca, after being drafted in by Kawasaki for the injured John Hopkins.
The three-time AMA champion claimed six podium finishes already this year for Kawasaki in the AMA Superbike championship, prompting team boss Michael Bartholemy to turn to the 37-year-old as Hopkins recovers from the injuries sustained in qualifying ahead of the Dutch TT at Assen.
Although a US citizen now, Hacking was hails from the Lancashire village of Oswaldtwistle before he moved to the United States at the age of nine years, making him the second British rider in this year’s competition alongside James Toseland.
Hacking will ride the number 12 bike at Laguna in a week’s time and is looking forward to testing himself against the best in the world.
“I’m really excited about riding Kawasaki’s Ninja ZX-RR in the USGP at Laguna Seca,” said Hacking.
“We’ve just completed two days of testing with the bike in Japan, and I felt pretty comfortable straight away.
“It’s an amazing machine. I can’t believe how sophisticated the electronics package is on the bike; already it feels like you can open the gas impossibly early out of the turns, but the data shows that it’s actually possible to open the throttle even earlier. To do this requires some confidence in the electronics, and that confidence will only come with more track time on the bike.
“Roger Lee set the benchmark at this race last year with an outstanding tenth place finish, so that’s certainly given me something to aim for.
“Laguna is one of my best tracks, but I’m under no illusions how hard it’s going to be. I’ll be up against some of the best riders in the world on a bike on which I’ve only had limited testing time. If I come away from the weekend with a top ten finish, then I’ll be happy.”
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