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John Hopkins

B

Baffy

Joined Jun 2011
270 Posts | 17+
Brisbane
Had a quick look few the first few pages of general chat and couldn't find a topic so I thought I would start one.



Is Hopkins MotoGP career over? Personally I think he may have done his dash but I want to hear your opinion.



I was going to post in the Bautista to Gresini thread but didn't want to get lost amongst the essays and personal grudges
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Jumkie said:
U want to know why i noticed it at that time, becuz John Hopkins had just had a stellar season in BSB, and it made me scrutinize Alvaro.
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This was the brief part of Jums essay the caught my attention, As we all know John has done a stint in MotoGP and since 'faded' in to the background (smaller series's)

(I have not watched any of the races so can not attest to how stellar Johns series was in the BSB.)

I do however remember that John was a consistent 'best of the rest' rider whilst in MotoGP and don't think that he would have lost any of the skills that took him to this level in the past.



Are we partially in agreement so far? (good because I am coming to my point)



Is John too loyal to Suzuki!?

As he sits he hasn't made a decision as to where he will be next year, as far as I can tell, because Suzuki hasn't given him a clear answer as to what they are doing?



IMO Jonh would be better off seeking a ride with a strong ride in WSBK that has ties within the GP circus, ten kate honda for example, and see where it takes him. I personally see this as a better stepping stone to GP than a really good BSB season (who was the last rider to jump from BSB ride to a MotoGP ride?)



Disclaimer



I have spent all day celebrating my last exam for the year, so my post may make very little sense, however i hope that it may induce a discussion that for at least 1 page may not involve "stoner is god" "rossi is ...." etc etc



Regards,



Baffy.
 
Baffy said:
(who was the last rider to jump from BSB ride to a MotoGP ride?)
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Off the top of my head i'm going with Shayne Byrne with KTM/Roberts or whatever it was. Needless to say it didn't go well.



I think John is the best prepared he's ever been, and he's definitely a rider who should be on the world stage. But i don't see him getting a top ride in GP, second chances are hard to find and despite the excellent season he's had it'd be hard for a team to justify chosing him over a current motogp rider with podium level experience and in some cases GP wins. I think he'd find regular podiums pretty challenging in GP, or he could be a regular winner in a good WSBK team, but there aren't many rides left there so if he's not alongside Camier at Suzuki he might be in for a tough year.



I always thought John was way too loyal to Suzuki in his first GP career, i felt he needed to get onto a satellite Honda and prove his worth against all the other established riders in a similar position. Having said that Suzuki gave him an excellent bike in 07 and the result was not too shabby at all.
 
Tom said:
I think John is the best prepared he's ever been, and he's definitely a rider who should be on the world stage. But i don't see him getting a top ride in GP, second chances are hard to find and despite the excellent season he's had it'd be hard for a team to justify chosing him over a current motogp rider with podium level experience and in some cases GP wins. I think he'd find regular podiums pretty challenging in GP, or he could be a regular winner in a good WSBK team, but there aren't many rides left there so if he's not alongside Camier at Suzuki he might be in for a tough year.
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Tom you have so eloquently written in 5 lines what i struggled to achieve in many more.



"it'd be hard for a team to justify chosing him over a current motogp rider" < This is what makes me think maybe a decent WSBK ride leading to (hopefully) a few wins and maybe a championship, and then heading to MotoGP might be an option?



I mean, Bayliss's ride with Duc shows to some extent age is not a huge problem.
 
Tom said:
Off the top of my head i'm going with Shayne Byrne with KTM/Roberts or whatever it was. Needless to say it didn't go well.
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He went to Aprilia first in 2004, then moved to KTM Roberts in 2005.



I think John's gotten the short end of the stick in this year's Silly Season. From everything I had heard, he was Suzuki's second option behind Bautista. It now appears that was never the case, Suzuki only wanted him in a limited role on their GP team (although Suzuki continue to string along Hopkins, hence the lack of an announcement on what series Hopkins will ride in for 2012, which will inevitably be WSB with Crescent). Then at LCR, it seemed as though he was a joint second option with Randy de Puniet after Bautista. I don't believe that team expected Stefan Bradl to be able to come up with the backing for that ride.



That said, if there is anyone looking after Hopkins' career (which sometimes I truly wonder if there is), this should be the final straw with Suzuki. I understood his desire to stay with the manufacturer and I understood he was holding on to that no. 2 standing behind Bautista. But when Bautista left and Suzuki scrambled for de Puniet, that would be the final nail for me. A lot of people have accurately said Hopkins has been too loyal to Suzuki. I would think that 2012 will be the end of that marriage, especially if Suzuki pulls out of GP.



But all is not lost. In a very impressive BSB season, Hopkins was asked to fill in for injured GP riders on multiple occasions and was considered for multiple GP rides. So long as the Crescent package is competitive, which I believe it will be, Hopkins should again put on an impressive display. Bar injury, Hopkins will probably be more attractive to teams for 2013 than he was for 2012.
 
Thanks Baffy, good topic. I think Tom & Austin have pretty much nailed my sentiments. Well done boys.



I'm a bit frustrated about the situation to comment further. It will probably come out wrong and I'll end up having some drawn out exchange with somebody. So suffice to say, I think Hopkins got screwed for being loyal.
 
I think his bsb season was nothing short of a revelation and probably surprised a lot of people.



For me personally other than money/passport I cant see why anyone would take bautista over hopper either.



Hopefully a good season in wsbk he and camier could motivate each other on in that team.
 
I know we have sort of covered hoppers stint in BSB. The guy was a credit to himself and the series. Just awesome. John does seem so ready to grab his second chance. He certainly has the talent and now he has the mentality and motivation to succeed. His perceived loyalty to Suzuki looks like it may have backfired in terms of his GP aspirations. He must be hurting that RDP has grabbed the seat. WSB with Crescent ain't a bad option considering where his career was at 18 months ago and I hope he continues his progression back to a good GP ride. I really really like the guy
 
Willski said:
I know we have sort of covered hoppers stint in BSB. The guy was a credit to himself and the series. Just awesome. John does seem so ready to grab his second chance. He certainly has the talent and now he has the mentality and motivation to succeed. His perceived loyalty to Suzuki looks like it may have backfired in terms of his GP aspirations. He must be hurting that RDP has grabbed the seat. WSB with Crescent ain't a bad option considering where his career was at 18 months ago and I hope he continues his progression back to a good GP ride. I really really like the guy
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Where has it been said that RDP has got the seat?

My understanding is he was just testing the bike, besides Hopper has had a donor bone put in his finger after the final round all the pins and plates pulling apart ruined his own. Surgery went well and is expected to make a full recovery.
 
RdP looks like he's on his way out - his GF Lauren Vickers just tweeted this - "Depression, panic, anger &frustration -just to name a few. Not how I wanted to say goodbye to all my friends in the paddock."
 
BarryMachine said:
WHo needs Hopkins when they could get this guy .....

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DzhjdNJ-gvQ[/media]
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If MotoGP adopts Bernie's artificial rain idea, Westy will have no shortage of job offers.



motortom said:
RdP looks like he's on his way out - his GF Lauren Vickers just tweeted this - "Depression, panic, anger &frustration -just to name a few. Not how I wanted to say goodbye to all my friends in the paddock."
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Suzuki were supposed to make their decision on whether to commit to MotoGP today, I'd take that tweet to mean they're out. de Puniet to Kawasaki WSB or Pata Aprilia?
 
motortom said:
RdP looks like he's on his way out - his GF Lauren Vickers just tweeted this - "Depression, panic, anger &frustration -just to name a few. Not how I wanted to say goodbye to all my friends in the paddock."
Click to expand...



Sad to hear if true, both RdP and Hopper deserve a seat. Though they would pose a welcome addition to WSBK.
 
See! ....... its a wacky world. RdP should be in there ....... but no. Hope they sort something out, RdP is a raw rider with space to go ( when on the right bike ) I like watching him ride.
 
Austin said:
If MotoGP adopts Bernie's artificial rain idea, Westy will have no shortage of job offers.
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Westy's reputation for being excellent in the rain seems to go above and beyond how well he actually has gone in the rain recently.
 
Tom said:
Westy's reputation for being excellent in the rain seems to go above and beyond how well he actually has gone in the rain recently.
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Tom, do you remember 'antfan'? Hahaha, where did that dude go?
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Hoppers not going anywhere for the next few weeks! Ouch



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Glad Ant West is making a comeback....



I had a heavy day on the Czech beer at Brno a few years back and went to a charity auction. Lot 5.... The Kawasaki racing pit shirt signed by Hopper and Ant West. I thought, I like Hopper, this has got my name on it.



Steve Parrish is the auctioneer. He says " Ok who will give £50 for the shirt " I then instantly say " I will give you a £150 "...Parrish says " anyone give me £160 ? " and I say " Yes "

Parrish says " Sold to the guy who outbid himself from £50 to £160 "



After buying the shirt, Hopper's and Westy's career seemed to take a nose dive......But I broke the shirt out at Laguna and things are looking up again for the pair of them.



Point to note. After outbid myself for the shirt, I then proceeded to wash it and the signatures disappeared
 
Willski said:
Glad Ant West is making a comeback....



I had a heavy day on the Czech beer at Brno a few years back and went to a charity auction. Lot 5.... The Kawasaki racing pit shirt signed by Hopper and Ant West. I thought, I like Hopper, this has got my name on it.



Steve Parrish is the auctioneer. He says " Ok who will give £50 for the shirt " I then instantly say " I will give you a £150 "...Parrish says " anyone give me £160 ? " and I say " Yes "

Parrish says " Sold to the guy who outbid himself from £50 to £160 "



After buying the shirt, Hopper's and Westy's career seemed to take a nose dive......But I broke the shirt out at Laguna and things are looking up again for the pair of them.



Point to note. After outbid myself for the shirt, I then proceeded to wash it and the signatures disappeared
Click to expand...

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