Samsung Crescent Racing’s John Hopkins and Jon Kirkham will race at this weekend’s British round of the World Superbike Championship at Silverstone. The GSX-R1000-mounted team mates – currently second and seventh in the British Superbike Championship – have been confirmed as wild-card entries for the race, which is round nine of the World series. Jack Valentine – Team Manager: “This is a kind of busman’s holiday: Taking a break from racing by going racing. But seriously, taking a one-off ride in the WSB series is a great way for our riders to further develop their bikes and practice some race craft without the pressures of the Championship they’re in – and at the same time giving the fans and sponsors an extra run-out. “We’ve had good success in the past with wild card rides, too, like Tom Sykes’ podium in 2008; we’re not there just to make up the numbers. And we can bet Hopper will be out to make a statement or two! We’re certainly looking to run competitively. Our only disadvantage is that we normally run under British Superbike rules, which allows only one bike per rider, not two. That said, we’ve got one of the most professional teams in the sport; they’re able to turn any job around very quickly and very accurately. We should be okay. “This will be valuable track time at Silverstone for Hopper and will be excellent preparation for when we come back for the BSB Showdown round later this year; there’s nothing like racing to get a real grip on how a bike’s performing at a circuit. JK is needing some extra bike time, too. We’ve been working hard to find an optimum set-up for him and the WSB weekend will offer him plenty of good track time to improve his set-up. “We’re really looking forward to it and hopefully we can spring a surprise or two on the regulars.”