Hopkins seeking a return to form
The injury-plagued John Hopkins, who says he is on the mend, is confident of taking another step forward when the WSBK series visits Aragon this weekend.
Riding for the Samsung Crescent Suzuki team, the 29-yer-old's season has been blighted by injuries, which have forced him to miss two rounds of the Championship.
Injuring his hand in mid-February when he suffered a corner-entry high-side in pre-season testing at Phillip Island, the American missed the opening round before returning at Imola.
He suffered another injury at the following event in Monza where a massive high-side resulted in a broken bone in his right foot and torn muscles in his left hip. It also resulted in Hopkins being forced to sit out Donington.
Making his return at Miller Motorsport Park, it was clear that the American was still in a lot of pain and it wasn't until the next round at Misano that he finally finished both Sunday races for the first time this season.
With that achievement under his belt and his fitness on the up and up, the Suzuki rider is hoping to turn his fortunes around starting at this weekend's Aragon round of the Championship.
"After the tests in Aragon last week, I stayed in Spain and spent some time near Barcelona," he said.
"It was great to finally catch up with some good weather, have some rest and do some training. I swam every day and find it one of the best forms of training for me.
"At the Aragon tests, we found a much better base setting for my FIXI Crescent Suzuki and, most importantly, made some big steps rebuilding my confidence.
"I really enjoyed riding the Aragon circuit and I'm looking forward to going there again, with the mindset of turning my poor first half of the season into a strong and positive second half."
