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| Catalunya Grand Prix, Spain 2002SUNDAY 16TH MAY - RACE DAY HOPKINS CRACKS THE TOP 10John Hopkins 2002 Season has been nothing short of remarkable. This
outstanding young American, who has raced in only six grand prix today achieved
his best finish of the season and in the process has reached his first MotoGP
goal, of finishing in the Top Ten. Hopkins is one of only 4 MotoGP riders
to have scored points in each round of the 2002 Season. JOHN HOPKINS - 10th "This is really good, I'm very happy. I qualified better than I expected and
I finished the race today in 10th, which is what I have been aiming for since
the beginning of the Season. So I have reached my first goal by race 6." Colin Davies (Race Engineer - John Hopkins) "We have reached another target today with John finishing 10th. He keeps on
making progress at each race and we are very happy with this. " ALEX HOFMANN - Retired "Well it was not to bad to begin with and I set my sights on riding at
Haradas speed but I was not able to stay with him. I went on to battle with
Riba in the early part of the race passing back and forth but in the last half
of the race I was basically racing alone. On the last lap something happened to
the bike, it stopped at the end of the straight on the last lap, I'm not sure
what happened to it. So I did not finish the race, and had to retire because of
the bike. It was a hard day for me." Christophe Bourguignon (Race Engineer - Alex Hofmann) "He did a good job today considering this is his first race on a 500 and he
was less than a second a lap down on John Hopkins so we are pleased with this.
Alex has tested on the bike at Assen so we look forward to racing there." Peter Clifford - Team Manager "Another good ride form John today. Obviously he might of done better still
if had not been caught up early on in the Nakano, Vd Goorbergh crash. He did a
brilliant job in avoiding that situation. Alex put in a good, solid performance
and it will be good to see what he can do with a few more kilometres under his
belt." Verves Lead singer visits Red Bull camp
English music rock legend and former Verve lead singer Richard Ashcroft swapped singing for speed this weekend at the Motorcycle World Championship in Spain. Seen here on the grid with American Red Bull Yamaha Rider John Hopkins (left) and Glaswegian mechanic Stewart Miller (centre) , Richard was blasted by the speed of the fastest machines on two wheels. Richard known for his global hit "Bitter Sweet Symphony" had a great day at
the track with wife Kate. Both are now working on his new Album due to be
released in September. MILLER GETS DREAM RIDE AT BARCELONA.
Stewart Miller in the Red Bull leathers, had just finished standing in for John Hopkins in some extensive photo shoots on a hot humid Spanish Summers Day at the races.
SATURDAY 15TH JUNE - OFFICIAL QUALIFYING HERO HOPKINS - QUALIFIES 6TH IN THE SIXTH GP OF HIS CAREERIn the searing heat at the Catalunya circuit, north of Barcelona, Spain, Red
Bull Yamaha rider John Hopkins rode his way into his best starting grid position
of his short, but remarkable MotoGP career. Hopkins who finished yesterdays
provisional qualifying session in 8th was aiming today to hold that place on the
second row of the grid, but he underestimated ability. JOHN HOPKINS - 6th 1'45.148 "That feels really good. I went out there today pushing it really hard in
the last few minutes and it paid off. We put on some brilliant Dunlop
qualifiers and I just put my head down and went for it. I made some small
mistakes in T1 and T2 so I knew I had to push hard in the last section. I saw a
45.1 on the big screen and than bike no. 21 and said 'That's Me.' So I'm really
excited and it's a great confidence booster for me." Colin Davies (Race Engineer - John Hopkins) "An excellent performance from John and the crew today. Dunlop is supplying
us with a great selection of tyres and John is performing really well on them.
John continues to improve at each race and I'm sure he can finish in the Top 10
tomorrow." ALEX HOFMANN - 19th 1.47.025 "I am happy with my performance today, I set out to do a 1.46.900 and I ended
up only 0.125 seconds away from that. I lost a bit of time in the early part of
the session but now I feel much more comfortable on the bike. It was good today
and I am really looking forward to the race tomorrow." Christophe Bourguignon(Race Engineer -Alex Hofmann) "We had a good afternoon and Alex improved by 2.038 seconds in the session.
Alex is more comfortable on the 2 stroke now and we have a good race set-up
for tomorrow." Peter Clifford - Team Manager " Heart-stopping. Just brilliant for John and I don't think this will be the
last time." GARRY McCOY- AIMING FOR BRITISH GP RETURNInjured Australian Rider Garry McCoy is eager to return to racing the Red
Bull Yamaha after his recent leg surgery in Austria. FRIDAY 14TH JUNE - QUALIFYING NO. 1 HOT LAP HOPKINS ON THE FASTEST 2 STROKE YAMAHAJohn Hopkins the 19 year old American rookie has put in another exceptional
performance in Friday's qualifying session in Barcelona aboard the Red Bull
Yamaha YZR 500. Finishing 8th in the scorching 34 degree temperature, Hopper is
very pleased with his performance in this his sixth MotoGP event of his career.
JOHN HOPKINS - 8th - 1'45.967 "I'm getting more comfortable on the bike now, I'm learning to understand it
more at each race and I am working in really well with the team and my
mechanics. ALEX HOFMANN - 21st - 1'49.063 "I am feeling better on the bike with each lap and getting more comfortable
on the 500 and I am making progress. We are fighting for grip on the rear in
these hot conditions and I have been sliding a lot in this session and going
sideways. So we have to make some changes for the set-up for tomorrow to improve
this." Peter Clifford - Team Manager "Just another step forward for John and its incredible to see how steady and
sure his progress is. We have to thank Dunlop for the work they are putting in,
which is helping with John's progress. HOFMANN MAKES HISTORY AT CATALUNYA GPGerman, Alex Hofmann makes racing history this weekend at the Catalunya GP in
Spain aboard the Red Bull Yamaha YZR 500. Hofmann, who has recently celebrated
his 22nd birthday, has the honour this weekend of being the first German rider
ever to race on a Factory 500 Yamaha. "I am the first German ever to compete on a Factory 500 Yamaha as well as the
first German to race in the new MotoGP class so it's history in the making this
weekend. I am so happy to be here and to be given this opportunity. I am here
to have fun and ride the bike at one of my favourite tracks. I am racing in the
best class, with the best riders on the best bikes and I will be pushing myself
to the limit. John Hopkins "I like this track, the elevation changes, the layout and the tight corners. It will be good to get on the bike on Friday and concentrate solely on the bike set-up and not have to learn a new track. I feel like I'm in really good physical condition and the heat here is just like being at home on a Summers day in San Diego, California."
ALEX HOFMANN DETAILS |
