MotoGP: Kevin Schwantz admits surprise at John Hopkins' Suzuki departure

Kevin Schwantz has admitted he was surprised at John Hopkins’ decision to quit Suzuki at the end of 2007 to make a multi-million pound switch to rivals Kawasaki.

Kevin Schwantz, who won the world 500 championship for Suzuki in 1993, said: “I was surprised to hear he’d gone.  

“John’s had a pretty long history with Suzuki and it’s a shame to see him go but that’s not to say there aren’t other challenges on the horizon. They might find somebody to suit the Suzuki better.”

Asked if he was surprised to see John Hopkins quit for the fast improving Kawasaki despite the huge strides Suzuki has made in 2007 with its factory GSV-R V4 800

And Kevin Schwanz added: “I guess that’s a classic example of the grass is always greener.

“As a rider if somebody out-qualifies or gets a better result you think ‘that guy is not as fast as me, so that bike must really be good.’ It’s an easy opinion to take on another bike.”