Hopkins feeling stronger for Misano race

The Kawasaki rider had missed three races due to injury, but returned to work at the Czech Grand Prix, where he qualified in the front row.

The Anglo-American rider was unable to match the result in the race, however, as his injury was not still completely healed. He dropped to 11th place.

But after two weeks of rest, Hopkins is confident he will be stronger this weekend at Misano.

"We had a positive weekend in Brno following my return to the track after a long absence through injury and we managed to put the Kawasaki on the front row," said Hopkins.

"Although I didn't quite achieve the result we were hoping for, Anthony got into the top five, which just shows that the Kawasaki is improving all of the time and is capable of gaining good results.

"I really enjoy the Misano circuit, I managed to get on the podium there last year so it's certainly a track I like. I've spent the last week in Miami resting and training just to give the injuries that I am still carrying the best possible time to recuperate, so I'm feeling stronger and ready to achieve the results we are more than capable of."

Teammate Anthony West, meanwhile, is hoping to keep his momentum going after scoring a career best fifth place at Brno.

"I am looking forward to going to Misano following my best ever result in MotoGP last time out at Brno," he said. "We had a positive post-race test there, and we managed to make further improvements to the bike, which has certainly made it easier to ride.

"I hope that we can continue with our development this weekend because I am determined for us to be fighting for more strong results in the dry."