Hopkins says top two were unstoppable

The Suzuki rider stayed with the top two initially, but eventually fell back to finish 16 seconds adrift in third place.

"I didn't have anything for Chris and Casey, so I just did the best I could," Hopkins told the BBC.

"I just got my head down, pulled out a gap a little bit. It's good, the Bridgestones and the Suzuki were unbelievable."

Hopkins benefited from the chaos in the opening laps of the race, as a first corner tangle eliminated Randy de Puniet and Dani Pedrosa, and severely delayed front row qualifier Nicky Hayden.

With Valentino Rossi then dropping out with engine problems, Hopkins had a comfortable gap to the rest of the field by the time his pace faded.

"I'm not sure what was going on behind me, I saw falls and stuff on the screens while I was going around the track," he said.

Rossi and Pedrosa's problems have given both Suzuki riders a shot at the top three in the championship. While Vermeulen said he was not too concerned about this goal, Hopkins is keen to make up ground in the standings in the final four races.

"I lost a couple of points to Chris today but we gained on second and third so it's going to be a good run to the end of the season," he said.