Samsung Suzuki's John Hopkins could not slow down his GSX-R1000 before he crashed out of the second British Superbike race today at Knockhill which caused his team-mate Jon Kirkham to take evasive action, resulting in him falling off on the grass.
Hopkins had clear grip issues right from the start of the outing, gesticulating to his pit crew several times before he eventually had a big slide, ran off track at Leslie's, fell and his bike forced both Kirkham and Josh Brookes to run across the wet grass.
"Right from the start of race two I was struggling with an issue that seriously compromised rear grip. This led me to crash when the bike wouldn't slow coming into turn two. As I went down I hit my elbow and shoulder on the kerb and so I'm pretty sore, but I should be okay with some rest," said Hopkins.
"Fortunately we're still where we want to be: in the top six, still in second place. And importantly we racked up more podium credits, which are going to be vital come the Showdown. The bike itself was excellent today and I'm sure we'll be battling for podiums again come Snetterton in two weeks' time."
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