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VACULIK: BIKE SWAP COST ME IN MALILLA

Slovak star Martin Vaculik admits being forced to switch bikes for the final re-run cost him dearly as Dan Bewley snatched Holmgrens Bil FIM Speedway GP of Sweden – Malilla victory away last Saturday night.Vaculik was in red-hot form all evening, racking up 13 race points in the heats. He then went wheel to wheel with home hero Fredrik Lindgren in the final, with the Swede running into him at the end of lap three after the Zarnovica-born racer left the door slightly open on the inside. Both men fell hard, and Lindgren was excluded.While Vaculik got a second chance to seal victory and he hit the front for a second time, he was forced to change equipment due to damage sustained in the crash.He admits his second bike was not quite so fast as Bewley made a clever cutback across the kerb on lap three, turn four to take his third Speedway GP win in just three final appearances.Vaculik, now fourth in the Speedway GP standings on 69 points, said: “The team did everything perfectly and I am sorry about losing my first bike in the final. After the crash, it was damaged, and I had to jump on the second bike. The setup on the second bike was not correct and it was really tough for me to stay on the good line.“But before the meeting, if you had offered me second place, I would have taken it. "Congrats to Dan – he was super good, and I am just looking forward to the rest of the season. We will take it meeting by meeting.”Vaculik now takes a short break from the FIM Speedway stage as the Monster Energy FIM Speedway World Cup comes to Wroclaw from Tuesday to Saturday next week – featuring the sport’s top nine nations battling it out for the iconic Ove Fundin Trophy over four nights of epic racing.STORY: PAUL BURBIDGE

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FIM SPEEDWAY ACTION COMES TO STREAMING PLATFORM RECAST

FIM Speedway action can now be streamed in more countries around the world after global promoter Warner Bros. Discovery Sports joined forces with streaming platform Recast.Through its current sublicense agreement with Warner Bros. Discovery, Recast brings live streaming coverage of this season’s FIM Speedway action to viewers in 128 additional countries on a pay-per-view basis, including key speedway nations such as the USA and New Zealand. This agreement builds on the extensive reach of the live action in Europe, where it is available to stream through Eurosport, discovery+ and the Eurosport App.Meanwhile, Recast subscribers can log in and enjoy exclusive, on-demand FIM Speedway content, featuring the sport’s biggest stars, including FIM Speedway ambassador, Greg Hancock.

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ELITSERIEN | BEWLEY MAXES OUT IN MALILLA

Great Britain racer Dan Bewley continued his red-hot form ahead of the Monster Energy FIM Speedway World Cup, scoring a 13 paid 15-point maximum as Dackarna thrashed Rospiggarna 59-31 in Malilla on Wednesday.Fresh from winning the Holmgrens Bil FIM Speedway of Sweden – Malilla last Saturday, Bewley made a sensational return to the Skrotfrag Arena as he went unbeaten by an opponent over five rides.He was aided by an 11 paid 12-point tally from former Danish champion Rasmus Jensen, while Aussie ace Brady Kurtz tallied 10 paid 11. Latvia’s Andzejs Lebedevs notched nine paid 10 and world No.3 Maciej Janowski scored eight paid 10 in a rock-solid team performance.Swedish star Antonio Lindback topped the Rospiggarna scoring on nine paid 11, with Denmark’s Niels-Kristian Iversen adding nine paid 10 and France racer Dimitri Berge collecting eight paid 10.Polish racer Dominik Kubera blazed to a 13 paid 15-point maximum of his own for Lejonen as they won 58-32 at home to Piraterna.Triple world champion Bartosz Zmarzlik almost matched his tally on 13 paid 14, with former world No.2 Jaroslaw Hampel collecting 12 paid 13 and Denmark’s Nicolai Klindt scoring 10 paid 11 following his recent arrival in Gislaved. SGP2 rider Casper Henriksson scored five paid six.Poland’s Pawel Przedpelski led the Pirates score chart on 11 points and Przemyslaw Pawlicki scored registered seven.The day’s other meeting between Smederna and Indianerna was postponed due to rain. REPORT: PAUL BURBIDGE

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ELITSERIEN | ZMARZLIK STARS IN LIONS WIN

Triple world champion Bartosz Zmarzlik bagged 13 points for Lejonen as they raced to a 50-40 victory away to Indianerna in the Bauhaus Elitserien on Tuesday.The Pole picked up three wins and two seconds from five outings and was well supported by fellow countryman Dominik Kubera, who collected 11 paid 12. Jaroslaw Hampel notched nine, with Sweden’s Oliver Berntzon adding eight paid nine points. SGP2 rider Casper Henriksson scored four paid five.Triple Aussie champion Max Fricke was Indians’ star man on 16 points, with Speedway GP rival Jason Doyle adding eight and SGP2 rider Bartlomiej Kowalski collecting five.Elsewhere, Danish racer Mikkel Michelsen racked up 12 paid 13 points for Vastervik as the coastal club triumphed 49-41 at home to near neighbours Dackarna. Gleb Chugunov supported him on 10 paid 11, with former World Under-21 champion Bartosz Smektala scoring eight paid nine and triple world champion Tai Woffinden notching seven paid eight.World No.3 Maciej Janowski bounced back from a tough Holmgrens Bil FIM Swedish Speedway GP in Malilla, scoring 14 points for Dackarna, with Denmark’s Rasmus Jensen racing to 12. Malilla winner Dan Bewley added six paid seven.In the day’s other meeting, a 12 paid 13-point haul from Sweden’s Antonio Lindback helped Rospiggarna hold on for a 46-44 win away to Piraterna.In a solid team performance that defied the absence of Speedway GP rider Kim Nilsson, Denmark’s Niels-Kristian Iversen recorded 10 paid 12, with German star Kai Huckenbeck collecting 10 paid 11. French international Dimitri Berge bagged nine paid 10.A 15-point maximum from Polish star Przemyslaw Pawlicki couldn’t save the Pirates from defeat, with Czech racer Vaclav Milik registering eight paid nine and Poland’s Oskar Fajfer adding eight.REPORT: PAUL BURBIDGE

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COLOURS FOR MONSTER ENERGY FIM SWC SEMIS CONFIRMED

The colour draw for the 2023 Monster Energy FIM Speedway World Cup has been revealed as the sport’s original team event returns to Wroclaw from July 25-29.As part of their 10-year vision for FIM Speedway, global promoter Warner Bros. Discovery Sports has brought the Monster Energy FIM SWC back after a six-year absence from the calendar, with the competition taking place over four nights of epic racing at the legendary Olympic Stadium.Poland lifted the iconic Ove Fundin Trophy in 2017, and they are seeded through to the Final on July 29 as host nation, with eight teams fighting for the right to join them. Semi-Final 1 on Tuesday, July 25 sees 2021 FIM Speedway of Nations world champions Great Britain compete in the white helmets, with 2015 Monster Energy FIM SWC winners Sweden in blue. Germany race in red with Czech Republic in yellow.Last year’s FIM SON world champions Australia line up in yellow for Semi-Final 2 on Wednesday, July 26, with four-time FIM SWC winners Denmark racing in white. Finland race in red, with first-time finalists France in blue.The winner of each Semi-Final joins Poland in the Final, with the second and third-placed nations entering the Race Off on Friday, July 28. The winner of that last-chance showdown completes the Final line-up.The starting line-ups for both Semi-Finals will be announced later this week. MONSTER ENERGY FIM SWC SEMI-FINAL DRAWSEMI-FINAL 1RED – GermanyBLUE – SwedenWHITE – Great BritainYELLOW – Czech Republic SEMI-FINAL 2RED – FinlandBLUE – FranceWHITE – DenmarkYELLOW - Australia

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VACULIK: BIKE SWAP COST ME IN MALILLA

FIM SPEEDWAY ACTION COMES TO STREAMING PLATFORM RECAST

ELITSERIEN | BEWLEY MAXES OUT IN MALILLA

ELITSERIEN | ZMARZLIK STARS IN LIONS WIN

COLOURS FOR MONSTER ENERGY FIM SWC SEMIS CONFIRMED