Hopper looks ahead to MCE BSB return

John Hopkins will make his much anticipated return to racing in 2014 after signing for the Tyco Suzuki team as the American ace sets his sights on a maiden MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship title.

Hopkins made history in 2011 as he became the first American rider to win a MCE BSB race when he was victorious at Oulton Park before pushing Tommy Hill all the way to the finish in the title chase. Now he is determined to be the first rider from the USA to celebrate a championship win after missing out by just 0.006 seconds to Hill in the closest ever title finish.

Hopkins said:

"I still have a point to prove in BSB definitely; it was extremely close at the end of 2011 and I am going into the 2014 season with the mindset of winning the championship. The big thing for me this season is that I don't have to learn all the tracks like I did in 2011, as I had to learn pretty much all of them during that year. I had other options for next season but this was the best one for me."

Hopkins has a long standing relationship with Suzuki, having finished fourth in the MotoGP World Championship in 2007; scoring podium finishes along the way and has raced for them in both the World and MCE British Superbike Championships. The Californian admits that his ambition was to remain with Suzuki for 2014, which will give him the best foundation to start the season after a year away from racing.

"It was really important for me to stay with Suzuki because they have always been a big part of my career and I love the company and the bikes," added Hopkins. "For me to come back to a bike I know after a year off is a good situation because I don't have any of the stress of learning a new bike and Suzukis really suit my riding style. It will take me a bit of time to get comfortable having not ridden for a while but I definitely believe that we will solve that straight away in pre-season testing."

Hopper's much anticipated return to racing follows him taking a year out to recover from accumulating injuries and have surgery on his hip which he now believes feels better than ever and now feeling revitalised, he is ready to put the injuries behind him.

Hopkins said:

"The hip was the main surgery I had and it wasn't a complete replacement but a matter of cleaning it up and transforming the shape because it was more like a rugby ball when it should be like a football before that. The advances in technology mean that they were able to save the bone and they went in and shaped it back, coated it and meshed the surface and now it feels better than it has in a long time. From 2008 to 2009 I have had either a fresh or niggling injury when I have been racing and I wanted a season to give myself time to heal as the injuries had stacked up. The finger injury I had in 2011 for example ended up having six surgeries in total before it was amputated because I wanted to fight for the title and carry on racing. Now though I definitely feel better than ever and although I haven't raced I have kept my riding fitness up with some motocross.''

Hopkins and 2011 champion Tommy Hill fought for the title throughout the season with the final race of the season declared by many as the 'race of the decade' and after missing out by just 0.006 seconds on the final lap of the last race, he is ready to take on the opposition again.

"I have been following the championship and the results, especially now we can see the races here in America," concluded Hopkins. "I expect 2014 to be tough again like it was in 2011, if not even more competitive now, because all of the riders at the front are clearly on top of the game. BSB is the strongest domestic championship in the world and it is good to be coming back."


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