MotoGP 2008 - Round Ten - Sachsenring (Germany)

MotoGP 2008 - Round Ten - Sachsenring (Germany)

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WEST GOES IT ALONE AT SACHSENRING

Anthony West will be the sole Kawasaki pilot on the grid for this weekend's German Grand Prix at Sachsenring, as teammate John Hopkins is forced to sit out the next two races due to injuries sustained during a high-speed qualifying crash at Assen two weeks ago.

West heads into this weekend's race determined to make amends for a disappointing result last time out at the Dutch TT, where a lap seven crash while lying 11th ended his hopes of a second top ten finish in succession.

The 26-year-old Australian has a good record at the 3.671km Sachsenring circuit, where he finished eighth at last year's German Grand Prix in only his third race aboard Kawasaki's Ninja ZX-RR, and where he scored no less than six top ten finishes in the 250cc world championship in previous seasons.

Such experience at the track is a major plus point: its undulations and numerous, tricky corners mean there's little room for overtakes and it'll be West's track knowledge combined with the low-down and midrange power of his Ninja ZX-RR that will come to the fore for this race.

The Sachsenring, near the town of Chemnitz in Eastern Germany, is a particularly twisty circuit, where the tarmac snakes through 10 left turns and just four rights, making the correct set up and tyre choice absolutely imperative.

The first race at Sachsenring was held in 1927 on an 8.7km public roads circuit that ran through the village of Hohenstein-Ernstthal. The shorter road race circuit was constructed in the early 1990’s and has since been used for a variety of racing activities.

Kawasaki MotoGP Pilot #13
"I quite like the Sachsenring circuit although, with its twists and turns and the fact that it has no real straight, it's a bit like racing around a go-kart track at times. It's really important to qualify well and then get a good start in the race, because it's really difficult to pass on this circuit. There are no real hard braking areas, so it's hard to pass on the brakes, and the straight is so short it's almost impossible to slipstream and then go past on power alone. And, with only four right-hand corners, you need to be a bit careful trying to pass there, as the right-hand side of the tyre tends to cool down quite quickly. But, it's a circuit that should suit our Ninja ZX-RR very well, and that should stand us in good stead this weekend. After Assen I'm determined to finish inside the top ten, and I hope it will be possible to improve on my tenth place finish at Donington this weekend."

Kawasaki Competition Manager
"When we learnt the full extent of John's injuries we looked at putting a replacement rider on the bike for Sachsenring, but time was against us. It was felt that it wouldn't have been fair to put someone on the bike who'd never ridden it before, and there just wasn’t time to organise a test ahead of the race, so Anthony will be flying the flag for Kawasaki on his own this weekend. He left Assen disappointed after crashing in the race and missing out on an almost certain top ten finish, but I'm confident that he will make amends this weekend with a strong performance at Sachsenring, where he's had good results in the past."

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HOPKINS SIDELINED FOR SACHSENRING AND LAGUNA

Kawasaki's John Hopkins will sit out the German and US Grand Prix races, after further medical checks revealed the injuries he sustained in a high-speed qualifying crash at Assen would require corrective surgery before he can return to action.

Hopkins crashed at 230km/h towards the end of qualifying for the Dutch TT, after losing the front of his Ninja ZX-RR at Ramshoek corner, the ultra-fast left-hander just before the final chicane. The Kawasaki pilot slid across the track and through the gravel trap before colliding feet first with the tyre wall on the outside of the turn.

X-rays of his injured left leg at the circuit medical centre revealed that Hopkins had sustained a fracture to the bottom of his tibia and that he had reopened a previous fracture, the result of a crash earlier in his racing career. The x-rays also showed a fracture to the lateral malleolus, which is one of the bones at the top of the ankle.

Hopkins had a further medical examination by Dr. Art Ting on his return to America last week. In addition to confirming the previously diagnosed fractures, a bone scan of the injured left leg also revealed a tibial plateau fracture just below the knee, and damage to the meniscus (cartilage), which was causing Hopkins' knee joint to lock.

Hopkins underwent successful surgery in Los Angeles on Monday to reset the bones in his ankle. During the operation, the meniscus in his left knee was also repaired and attached to the bone using keyhole surgery techniques.

As a result of the surgery Hopkins will not be able to bear any weight on his damaged left leg for three weeks, after which he will undergo extensive rehabilitation therapy, with a full recovery from his injuries expected to take between six to eight weeks in total.

The current goal is for Hopkins to make his return to racing at the Czech Republic Grand Prix, which takes place on 17 August.

Kawasaki Competition Manager
"I am sorry for John, as I know he was looking forward to racing in front of his home crowd at Laguna Seca, where he always enjoys a lot of support. But it's just not possible; he has had surgery to fix the injuries he sustained at Assen, and now he needs sufficient recovery time to ensure that he's fully fit before he makes his racing return. Obviously we are hoping that this return will come at the Czech Republic Grand Prix, but we will be monitoring John's recovery very closely and we have no intention of putting him back on the bike before he's ready. If this means he doesn't race at Brno, then that's how it will be, because we don't want to risk making things worse by allowing him to return before he is fully recovered. Now we know the full extent of John's injuries we are looking at the possibility of running a replacement rider at Laguna Seca. We will make a further announcement about this ahead of this weekend's German Grand Prix."