Kawasaki competition manager Michael Bartholemy, openly critical of West's performance, was quick to praise Hacking for delivering a 'great race'.

"Jamie has done a fantastic job all weekend, and he pushed hard and rode a great race," said Bartholemy. "He proved to everyone in his first race that our bike was capable of running at the same pace as the riders who were battling for fourth.

"With a higher qualifying position and a better start, he'd have been battling for position much further up the order today. I'd like to personally thank Jamie for his approach to the weekend; everyone in the team appreciated his professionalism."

Hacking is not scheduled to make any further MotoGP appearances, although Kawasaki might be tempted to field a third bike for him at September's Indianapolis Grand Prix.