Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

John Hopkins: Two More Years J ohn Hopkins, who turned 22 in May, is the youngest rider in MotoGP. And he's lust signed a deal for two more years with Suzuki. It was a decision that surprised many. The England-born, California-raised racer, a definite hard-charger, was once dubbed "the new Kevin Schwantz." But "Hopper" has never had the same sort of machinery. After a spirited debut on a twostroke Red Bull Yamaha SOO in 2002, with a best of seventh up against the MotoGP four-strokes, the team collapsed, and he was drafted into the Suzuki squad at a time when not even former World Champion Kenny Roberts Jr. could get the down-onpower V-four into a competitive position. Unless it rained. Hopkins' best result in a difficult year was another seventh, bettered by a sixth in 2004 at Estoril. He was clearly riding at maximum aggression on almost every lap. The shortcomings in horsepower dictated this. It's also a strategy, however, of maximum risk. There were promises aplenty for a much better 2OOS, including a new team manager. And the V-four GSV-R did improve. Sadly for Suzuki, though, not as much as the Hondas - and especially not as much as the Yamaha. Hopkins' results this year are even worse than in 2004, with a best of seventh and more than a few tumbles, including a dire weekend in Germany with a heavy highside in practice. Pumped full of painkillers, in dubious condition to race, Hopkins lost control in the eariy stages and crashed again, causing the race to be red-flagged. The result: He needed even more surgery to his left ankle during I think Paul Denning is doing a pretty decent job with the com- munication level with the Japanese and the amount of interest that Suzuki's actually showed in retaining me. They're definitely putting a lot more into the machine, going into this next year. On top of that, all of the top factory rides everywhere else they're pretty much rock solid right now. And it's also in the contract that I was going to be the A rider next year. The basic thing is they're working directly with me, and getting the bike to how I want to have it, and starting to take all the developments off of my riding style. What about horsepower? That's obviously an issue. Yeah, that's the most worrying thing, because that's where we're down everywhere. It's just impossible to ride the bike as it is like a normal MotoGP machine, like the higher horsepower machines. The corner speed we're having to carry is hurting the edge grip on our tires. When we have edge grip, we're there. But when we don't, we have to ride like everyone else, and we just lose tenth after tenth, corner after corner, straightaway after straightaway. Does it ever worry you how hard you have to ride it? Yeah, a little bit. But I've gotta do what I've gotta do, and if I wasn't riding it that "I simply think I'm a better rider." - John Hopkins the summer break. Hopkins, by his efforts, ability and youth, should be a hot property in MotoGP. One might think in particular of Yamaha, likely to lose their only young rider with any taient, Toni Elias, to Honda next season. Or Ducati, the Italian team similarly short of a reserve of youth. Hopkins spoke to both of these teams and came close with Ducati. In the end, to the surprise of many, he opted to stay at Suzuki for two more years, signing the deai at Bma. A week later, we asked him why. And he explained - along with a little slap to his young American rival Nicky Hayden, whose gift of a factory Honda has been the opposite of the path marked out for a rider whose ambition to become World Champion at 21 may have been thwarted, but whose target is still clear. You've signed up to stay two more years with Suzuki, Considering the results so far,.. why? 10 hard, then I would end up finishing where my teammate ends up most of the time. What other options did you have? Surely Yamaha ought to be looking for some· one for the future, They didn't really have the best of options. I mean, there were options there, but I figured there would have been more. There wasn't anything to take me away from the Suzuki deal. Are you talking only money, or is it more than that? Not just the money at all. Perlormancewise and stuff, I'd like to be able to get on a machine,and put my input into the future of the machine. Riding for a B team or whatnot, a satellite team, you're not going to get that option. You're just riding what someone else has ridden. I have every bit of confidence that Suzuki is going to have the machine right. The thing that was bugging me the most was to leave 'em, and then next year they get it com- SEPTEMBER 21, 2005 • CYCLE NEWS pletely right, for some other rider to reap all the benefits. Has Suzuki given you any promises on horsepower and engine development? Yeah, before the end of the year, actually. It did take a step forward, enginewise, at the British Gp, didn't it? Yeah, definitely. Has there been more since? Actually, the Monday after Brno we ended up going really well, and making quite a few improvements. A couple of new engine things, but we also tried a setting we'd never tried before, and we had some new tires that Bridgestone wanted to test that are going to be in Motegi. Tires are another thing. Are you happy with the Bridgestones? You know, at the moment, it's - kinda up in the air. [There were rumors that Suzuki is talking to Michelin for 2006.)1 have every bit of faith that Bridgestone are going to get it right. Right now, the basic thing is we just need more consistency out of the tire, from race to race. Some races they're really good, some races they're just not there. I think it's a lack of experience. They're putting in all the effort, and all the development that's needed. Michelin's been at the top so long, they're just trying to claw their way up to them. What you said about Yamaha and B teams, I guess that also applies to Honda. Yeah, there was optionS at Honda as well. But it wasn't anything real good, and it was taking too long. It was like if I would have waited too long, maybe they'd say, ''Actually, we don't have an option." Then I wouldn't have had anything at the end of the waiting game. What about Ducati? That was definitely the strongest option. That was almost to a point when I could have signed the deal any time. So it wasn't an easy decision then. No, it definitely wasn't. Look at Ducad they got on the podium at Bmo. But I think that they're gonna have a difficult time next year. Out ofthe overall bikes, I think Suzuki is going to be a bener machine next year. The other young American, mean.. while, is having a high old time. Is it hard for you to watch Nicky Hayden come straight into the top team and get all the cookies? Yeah. It's the most difficult thing I think anyone has to endure. It's upsetting. In my eyes, I just don't think he's up to the job. Isimply think I'm a better rider. It is frustrating. But at the end of the day, you just have to do what you can with what you're given. And eventually the best man will corne out on top. Did you ever race against Nicky before coming to GPs? Yeah, I raced a couple of times against him in America. It was only like three times, but two of those times I beat him. Myopinion that I can beat him goes back a long way. And on the same machinery, lOOpercent I could now. So is he a bit of a target then? Definitely. Obviously I have nothing against him personally. I just won't become friends with him. We're both the young Americans, so he's definitely the person on the track I most want to beat at the moment. It's not a personal thing. It's better not being friends with him. The basic fact is if it comes to a point that he has to go off the track - so be it. No guilty conscience over it. Michael Scott

• Cover