Hopkins Undergoes Hip Surgery

The former MotoGP rider high-sided during free practice, April 24 in Assen, Netherlands, in only his second-ever WSBK round. The California native dislocated his hip in the crash and fractured his left femur. Doctors at a local hospital reset his hip but Hopkins flew to Fremont, Calif. for surgery on his femur.

I have never been in so much pain in my whole life even though I have been in a few crashes! I was thrown into the air and landed on the track with my feet first, says Hopkins who races for Stiggy Honda. After an agonizing wait in the hospital, I felt slightly better when my hip was put back into place, but on Saturday morning I just felt like I had been run over by a train. Fortunately, my wife made a surprise visit to see me in Assen and supported me throughout the long flight back home.

John suffered a posterior fracture dislocation of his left hip. When he arrived here in Fremont on Sunday, we did a CT scan which showed us the fracture of his femur, says Ting. He was taken into the operating room on Monday morning where his fractures in the hip joint and pelvis were fixed with five solvable screws. John already walked out of the hospital on crutches, and will start training again within two weeks. I expect his full recovery to take up to six weeks, but with John anything is possible.

Hopkins will miss the May 10 round in Monza, Italy and the May 17 round in Kyalami, South Africa. The Miller Motorsports Park round is scheduled for May 31, less than five weeks after his surgery, so Hopkins will need to make a speedy recovery if he hopes to race in Utah.

I know John is tough and determined to come back to race as soon as possible, says Johan Stigefelt, Stiggy Honda team manager. He will train hard to make a speedy recovery, and Im sure he will be joining the team again shortly. Hopefully he will be ready to compete again in the US round; that would be great for all of us.