JOHN HOPKINS has put himself in doubt for the opening of the 2012 World Superbike championship after breaking his hand in a testing crash.
The American was at Phillip Island - along with the majority of the WSB field - for an unofficial test ahead of the season opener, that takes place at the same circuit in less than two weeks time.
The Crescent Fixi Suzuki rider fell early on the opening day, crashing at high speed on the corner-entry of turn two.
Hopkins was taken to hospital where x-rays revealed he had a broken bone in his right hand, the same hand which is recuperating from an operation which saw him have a finger amputated last month.
Describing the crash, Hopper said: "The track conditions were not the best and we started the day a bit late because there were some damp patches around from the overnight rain. Having said that, it wasn't the damp that caused the crash. I was on a used tyre and probably on the last lap before pulling in. I exited turn one and might have been just a little bit too hot for the condition of the tyre going into turn two, when suddenly the rear came round even before I got on the brakes. I was spat off and unfortunately came down on my right hand - the same one that is missing a bit of finger. The X-rays show that I have fractured a bone in the base of the hand near what's left of my fourth finger.
He also revealed that he would head home to see specialists before making a decision to undergo further surgery, as an operation would likely rule him out of the first race on 26th February.
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