BSB: Hopkins to miss Thruxton round

John Hopkins will sit out of this weekend’s Thruxton round of the MCE British Superbikes to further recover from the injuries he suffered at Knockhill last month.

Hopkins sustained a broken and dislocated collarbone and broke four ribs in a nasty highside in wet conditions at the Scottish circuit, which forced him to miss the last round at Snetterton.

Undergoing surgery immediately after Knockhill, Hopkins has undergone further treatment and physio in the hope of riding this weekend, but following advice from his medical team, he has instead opted for a Brands Hatch return at full fitness.

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“I am extremely disappointed to miss this weekend,” he said. “It has been a positive recovery as when I visited my doctor he was very impressed with the rate of healing and the bone is moulding together but the problem is where the fracture is, is right in the joint and that had to be reconstructed. Unfortunately soft tissue takes time to heal and the smallest thing could knock it back out of place and put me out for longer.

“As disappointing as it is to sit out this weekend we can come back to Brands Hatch and be fit. It is such a shame as it is a track both myself and the Yamaha has proven to be strong at and it would have been nice to try and achieve one of our best results of the year. I now have all my focus on Brands Hatch and doing everything I can to be there and I have no doubt I will be ready to go.”

Hopkins’ absence means Scotsman Stuart Easton will fly the flag solo for Tommy Hill’s ePayMe Yamaha squad at Thruxton this weekend. 

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