NEW ERA OF FIM SPEEDWAY LAUNCHES TONIGHT

30/04/2022

NEW ERA OF FIM SPEEDWAY LAUNCHES TONIGHTNEW ERA OF FIM SPEEDWAY LAUNCHES TONIGHT

A new era of speedway launches tonight as Discovery Sports Events kicks off its 10-year tenure as global FIM Speedway Grand Prix promoter with the FIM Speedway GP of Croatia – Donji Kraljevec.

Sixteen of the world’s top riders, including three former world champions with six Speedway GP world titles between them, take to the track at Speedway Stadium Milenium, with Discovery bringing the racing to more viewers than ever before – however they choose to watch.

The track action gets underway with Qualifying Practice at 13:00 CET, with the first Speedway GP of 2022 getting started at 19:00.

The event marks the start of an exciting partnership between Discovery Sports Events and the FIM, motorcycling’s global governing body, which will see the fan experience at FIM Speedway events revamped and the sport’s entire development structure taken under one umbrella.

The FIM Speedway Under-21 and Under-16 World Championships become SGP2 and SGP3 and will be staged as part of Speedway GP weekends, with SGP2 rounds taking place in Prague (May 27), Cardiff (August 14) and Torun (September 30) and SGP3 being staged over a single night in Wroclaw on August 26.

 

THE LINE-UP

Discovery’s FIM Speedway journey begins at Donji Kraljevec’s Speedway Stadion Milenium tonight with 16 of the sport’s top riders battling it out on one of the sport’s fairest race tracks.

Poland’s double world champion Bartosz Zmarzlik and Maciej Janowski both head to Croatia seeking flying starts to 2022, while Swedish star Fredrik Lindgren is hoping to repeat the heroics that saw him reach two FIM Croatian Speedway GP finals in 2010 and 2011.

Triple world champion Tai Woffinden is joined in the series by his fellow FIM Speedway of Nations world champions Robert Lambert and Dan Bewley as the Brits track three full-time Speedway GP riders for the first time since 2004.

Former world No.2 Leon Madsen of Denmark is also bidding to top the podium along with 2017 world champion Jason Doyle and his fellow Aussie ace Max Fricke. Last year’s European champion Mikkel Michelsen of Denmark returns to the series after a year away, with Danish champion Anders Thomsen back for a second season.

Slovak star Martin Vaculik returns for 2022, while Poland’s FIM GP Challenge winner Pawel Przedpelski and Australia’s Jack Holder join Bewley in making their full-time Speedway GP debuts this season.

Tonight’s event also features Slovenian star Matej Zagar, who raced in Speedway GP in 2006-2007 and 2013-2021 and has won two FIM GP Challenges at a venue where he always brings a large contingent of Slovenian fans from across the border.

With an exciting blend of Speedway GP experience and newcomers, a new era of Speedway GP truly is beginning.

2022 FIM SPEEDWAY GP OF CROATIA – DONJI KRALJEVEC LINE-UP (in ranking order with rider numbers: 95. Bartosz Zmarzlik (Poland), 71. Maciej Janowski (Poland), 66. Fredrik Lindgren (Sweden), 108. Tai Woffinden (Great Britain), 30. Leon Madsen (Denmark), 46. Max Fricke (Australia), 69. Jason Doyle (Australia), 505. Robert Lambert (Great Britain), 105. Anders Thomsen (Denmark), 54. Martin Vaculik (Slovakia), 323. Pawel Przedpelski (Poland), 155. Mikkel Michelsen (Denmark), 692. Patryk Dudek (Poland), 25. Jack Holder (Australia), 99. Dan Bewley (Great Britain), 16 Matej Zagar (Slovenia – wild card), 17 Nick Skorja (Slovenia – first track reserve), 18 Dennis Fazekas (Hungary – second track reserve).

 

WHERE TO WATCH – FIM CROATIAN SPEEDWAY GP

Qualifying Practice: 13:00 CET

FIM Croatian Speedway GP: 19:00 CET

Fans with access to Discovery+ or the Eurosport App in selected countries can enjoy full live coverage of all the FIM Speedway action this year, featuring qualifying practice coverage, a documentary series and other innovative features, including live data such as rider heartbeat, reaction time and trajectory analysis to illustrate the demands placed on the riders on the track.

Linear coverage is also available in selected countries – see below for more details of where to watch.

Every round of Speedway GP in 2022 will be available live and in full on Discovery+ and the Eurosport App in countries where these services are available.

BRITAIN: Live on Discovery+ and Eurosport 2

POLAND: Live on Eurosport in Player.

SWEDEN: Live on Discovery+

DENMARK: Live on Discovery+ and 6’Eren

AUSTRALIA: Live on Fox Sports

USA: Live on beIN SPORTS

GERMANY: Live on the Eurosport App

CZECH REP: Live on the Eurosport App

CROATIA: Live on SPTV and the Eurosport App

NORWAY: Live on Discovery+

FINLAND: Live on Discovery+

ACROSS THE BALTICS: Live on Discovery+ and Go3

SELECTED ASIAN MARKETS: Live on beIN SPORTS