Josh Hook scored his first points in WorldSBK in Round 6 at Sepang International Circuit, with the Australian rider crossing the line in Malaysia to get on the scoreboard in both the dry conditions of Race 1 and the tricky wet conditions of Race 2. The rest of the season was not to be, however, as Taree-native Hook parted ways with the Grillini team ahead of Round 7 at Donington Park. At the Catalan GP in Montmeló in support of fellow Aussie, EG 0,0 Marc VDS rider Jack Miller, Hook sat down with WorldSBK.com to assess some of his first experiences in WorldSBK, and where he goes from here.

“Grillini and I parted ways before Donington,” lamented Hook. “After Sepang and scoring points I was looking forward to moving forward with the bike and the team but it wasn’t meant to be. At this stage, I’m keeping my options open. For me right now I’m focused on training, so that when the time comes to jump on a bike, I’m strong and 100% fit. Things happen during a season and I want to be ready to step in straight away if there are any opportunities.”

Scoring points as a WorldSBK rookie isn’t enough for the native of New South Wales, who feels there’s a lot more potential for results in World Superbike. After an injury-hit start to the season, Hook made it back to full fitness after having missed two Rounds – including his home race at Phillip Island – due to an injury in pre-season testing. Losing another Race in Assen after the bike was unable to line up on the grid in Race 2, Hook’s initial experience of WorldSBK gained some momentum thereafter in Malaysia, culminating in the two points finishes at Sepang.

“When I was back at 100% fitness and the bike didn’t have any problems…when we got no interruptions to the track time, we did a good job. We saw that in Sepang where everything went well – it’s one of the longest tracks on the calendar and the gap to the front guys was the smallest it had been all year. That was a good direction and we started making some good improvements, and scored points. I’ve showed I’m fast already, like in the Suzuka 8h getting on the podium. There I was as fast or faster than people who can win WorldSBK races, so when this opportunity to go to WorldSBK came in, I jumped at it. It’s a World Championship and it’s always going to be a challenge, but I’m not satisfied yet. I know myself and I know I’m capable of much better. So I’ll just keep chipping away at it and hopefully I’ll get on something that’s capable of getting back up there – I know we can do a lot better.”

After the heat of Sepang and the British summer of Donington, WorldSBK now heads to Misano World Circuit on the Riviera di Rimini for Round 8 of the 2016 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship.