John Hopkins Signs with FB Corse MotoGP Team

Yeah, that too.

 

I recall a lot of the discussion in 2007 was about the Kawasaki being one of the best bikes on the grid and that the general consensus was that it didn't have the best riders (DePuniet and West).

 

I hesitated but I asked Edwards to sign the magazine article at the Aprilia Track Day at Jenning a few years ago. He just laughed!

 

Using the catastrophic injuries to get a laugh was lame. I just hope your not Nostradumbass.

 

+1, but I have a good feeling Hopkins will do well.

 

Is the story even real? The body work on the bike in the pics looks like some homemade garbage.

 

dude. http://forums.13x.com/showthread.php?p=2834382#post2834382

 

IMO this is about the second worst career move Hopper could've made for 2010 (first being to come to DMG). Over-riding an uncompetitive bike and crashing hard while doing so is what got his career off the rails in the first place (2008). This bike is bound to be even worse than 08 Kawasaki.

I dunno, maybe he's thinking he can do what Melandri did last year but that seems to be rather foolish. The bike Melandri rode was developed by a team that had been in the championship for 8 years. They just happened to get it somewhat write before they pulled out. FB Corse is new to the championship trying to race an unproven bike. On top of that, they haven't even taken the bike to one test yet. This has Ilmor written all over it. I'd wager that they'll do worse than Ilmor.

There was a thread about this on Speed forums (before they fucked it up). The general consensus was that he should've tried to score a good ride in Moto2 to rebuild his career. Moto2 is about the only place where there are still competitive rides to be had this late in the game. If he wont the Moto2 title or came close then it'd be much more likely he could get another decent Moto GP ride.

Thrashing around at the back of the grid in Moto GP is much less likely to result in a better 2011 ride. And that's assuming that FB Corse can get through the whole season in the first place.

 

speed board? You ever consider what weinerheads and assnecks that post there? If the consensus of that board was that the earth was round, I'd have to believe that it was flat.

Weinerheads and assnecks!!!

 

Guys with bratwurst heads and bootynecks or not, I can't really see why anyone would think riding at the back of the pack on an unproven-very-likely-to-fail project like FB Corse is a better deal than running at the front in Moto2.

Of all the guys who rode the WCM (not the Yamaha 500 WCM) and the KR bike, how many of them got a better GP ride the next season? Hell, even with the D'Antin Ducati satellite ride only one guy got a better Moto GP ride after riding it. To be fair, very few of those guys were as fast as Hopper but the point is that even if you ride a slow bike as fast as is humanely possible it makes no difference if you still finish last.

 

Yes, KR jr. Went from team KR and their triple to Suzuki and went on to become world champ.

 

I should've said in the last ten years but that is a good example. But he is the only one I can think of and that was quite some time ago.

So what's your viewpoint, do you think Hopper's best chance for getting his career back on track is FB Corse?

 

Maybe he didn't really have better options.

 

I believe the correct saying is "if Grandma had nuts, she'd be Grandpa."
Just saying.

 

One could make the argument that Hoppers demise started long before this> not so much with his on track performance but with what he was doing while away form the track. No doubt he has an abundance of talent but I'm not sure his dedication was/is at the same level.

One thing is for sure, is if he does well in 2010 - scoring points in each round while not having in off track drama teams will notice and he'll be back on a better team. The only thing working against him is that the better teams are becoming less and less.

 

I can't imagine there is a future for him in MotoGP. But if he stays healthy and disciplined off the track, I think he can still have a good career in SBK after 2010.

 

What's his best option in my opinion? WSK and find a way to get a top ducati.

 

Agreed. It was my feelings that most Moto2 rides are for riders bringing money to the table, not wanting to get paid.

 

And the constant influx of younger talent. If Hopkins has a team that is paying him a salary and showing up to every round then he his further ahead than alot of racers right now. But I don't see a light at the end of the tunnel for him. Hopkins is on the Kurtiss Roberts career track right now.

 

That is not a good place to be either...