FRICKE DEFENDS AUSSIE TITLE AT GILLMAN

Speedway GP racer Max Fricke ends his near-three-year wait to defend his Australian Championship when he lines up in the 2022 event at Adelaide track Gillman on December 10.

Fricke won his second national title in January 2020, months before the Covid-19 pandemic threw the world into chaos, with Australia imposing some of the world’s strictest measures to control the virus.

This led to the 2021 edition of the Australian Championship being cancelled completely, with the 2022 competition pushed back to the end of this year.

FIM Speedway of Nations world champion Fricke will start the meeting as red-hot favourite as he takes on the likes of 2020 FIM Speedway Under-21 world champion Jaimon Lidsey, former Aussie champion Sam Masters, Justin Sedgmen, Keynan Rew and Zane Kennedy, plus brothers Ben and Zach Cook, who recently helped SGB Championship club Poole to a second straight league and cup double.

It is unclear whether any Speedway GP qualification places will be up for grabs on December 10 as the 2023 Australian Championship will then be staged in its usual January slot, with the competition returning to a five-round format.

The 2023 opener takes place at Gillman on January 3, before racing moves to storied Victorian venue Mildura on January 5 and Albury on January 7.

New South Wales track Kurri Kurri – on the edge of the Hunter Valley – hosts round four on January 9, with the decider at North Brisbane in Queensland on January 11, where former Speedway GP rider Darcy Ward promotes events.

2022 AUSTRALIAN CHAMPIONSHIP LINE-UP: Fraser Bowes, Maurice Brown, Ben Cook, Zach Cook, Max Fricke, Zane Keleher, Zane Kennedy, Jaimon Lidsey, Josh MacDonald, Sam Masters, James Pearson, Keynan Rew, Cooper Riordan, Justin Sedgmen, Michael West, Tate Zischke.