NILSSON FAMILY BUSINESS EXPANDING

Speedway GP newcomer Kim Nilsson says Swedish title-winning father Tommy will still be part of his racing team, even if he has to expand ahead of his World Championship debut season.

While Nilsson has raced as a Speedway GP wild card and track reserve before, his victory at the 2022 FIM GP Challenge in Glasgow means he will line up in the series full time this season.

For much of his career, Nilsson has been aided in the pits by his father Tommy, the 1983 Swedish champion who also finished 10^th in the 1977 World Final.

While Tommy will remain very much part of team Nilsson, Kim admits he has been forced to recruit an additional mechanic to meet the demands of racing in Speedway GP, as well as competing for Swedish club Rospiggarna and German-based Landshut in the Polish First Division.

He said: “To start with, there was a lot of talk about how it would be possible to do the whole season in the GPs. Of course, I still wanted to race in the leagues like before, and it is a big change for me.

“Before, it was just me and my dad doing everything. I do a lot on my own – washing the bikes and everything like that. But we only have 24 hours in the day, and I have had to get some help now.

“I have employed a mechanic and I am trying to get some more help around the team, so that I don’t have to do everything.

“I will still have a finger in everything. I’m that kind of person. I need to be hands-on. But at least I will have some help with bike washing, building the bikes and preparing in between the races.

“My dad will still be at the meetings, but he won’t be as involved as before. He’s nearly 68 now, so I think he needs to have it a bit easier.”

Having followed in his father’s footsteps to reach the modern-day equivalent of a World Final, Kim is doing the Nilsson family proud.

Asked how Tommy feels to see him in Speedway GP, Kim replied: “He’s not the kind of person that says he’s proud, but I am guessing he is a bit proud. He has been involved in all my seasons, servicing my engines. We have a really good partnership.

“I have had different people helping me abroad all the time, but in Sweden, he has been there at all the meetings since I started pretty much.”

Father and son partnerships have a mixed history in the Speedway GP pits, with some ending in constant arguments. But having worked with Tommy for his whole career, 33-year-old Nilsson is pleased their bond has stood the stresses and strains of speedway life.

He said: “It works well for us. Of course, we have arguments, but it’s only because we both want to do well. We always find a way to sort things out and we work quite well together.”