John Hopkins admits he won't be thinking about the title contenders in his mission to secure a podium finish at the final round of the MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship at Brands Hatch this weekend (16/17/18 October).

The Californian has been building momentum in his quest to return to the podium and secure the Lloyds British Moto Rapido Ducati team their first top three finish in MCE BSB, finishing in fourth place in the first race at Silverstone last time out. Now the former MotoGP ace is determined to go at least one better in the three races this weekend, and won't be letting any of the Title Fighters stop his ambition becoming reality.

Hopkins said:

"I am really looking forward to the final round and I am feeling really positive about the weekend. We had a good race at Silverstone before we had a problem in race two, but I feel that we are in a better position coming into this weekend - the last time we raced at Brands Hatch in the summer I had spent less than an hour on the Lloyds British Moto Rapido Ducati! I was dropped in at the deep end then, but we have had updates since then and I definitely feel more comfortable on the bike so we are more prepared for this weekend.

"I think there is no reason why we can't get on that podium this weekend and mix it up a bit; perhaps even set the Showdown in some way because it would be nice to finally get in that top three after all the unfortunate things that have happened this season that have been beyond our control as a team. I am definitely ready to try and fight for it to repay the team for all their hard work."