LAGUTA WINS ON COMEBACK IN BYDGOSZCZ

Artem Laguta made a victorious return to the sport after topping the podium at the Criterion of Aces in Bydgoszcz on Sunday. The 2021 Speedway GP world champion missed the entire 2022 season after the FIM suspended Russian riders’ licences until further notice due to the country’s invasion of Ukraine. But Laguta also holds Polish citizenship and, after securing a Polish licence over the winter, he topped the podium on 13 points at the Polonia Stadium, with Polish international Dominik Kubera winning a four-man run-off for second place, with Szymon Wozniak third. They tied on 11 points with Kacper Woryna in fourth place and fifth-placed triple world champion Nicki Pedersen, who is also making a racing comeback after overcoming the badly broken hip and pelvis he suffered last June. Reigning world champion Bartosz Zmarzlik claimed 10 points in the event, with Speedway GP rival Patryk Dudek scoring seven along with French international David Bellego, Andreas Lyager and former world No.2 Jaroslaw Hampel. Hampel also tasted victory this weekend after winning Polish legend Piotr Protasiewicz’s farewell meeting in Zielona Gora on Saturday. He triumphed on 14 points, with former world No.3 Emil Sayfutdinov second as he joins Laguta in making a return on a Polish licence. Zmarzlik was third, also on 11 points. Kubera tallied 10 along with Czech racer Jan Kvech, while Dudek notched nine on his boyhood track, Maciej Janowski scored seven and Max Fricke collected five points. Elsewhere in Poland on Sunday, former World Under-21 champion Bartosz Smektala triumphed in the Alfred Smoczyk Memorial meeting as he makes his Leszno return for 2023. He defeated former Bulls favourite Przemyslaw Pawlicki in a run-off after they tied on 13 points. Former World Under-21 champion Jaimon Lidsey took third place on 12.

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DOYLE SEES OFF LINDGREN TO WIN MASTERS' TESTIMONIAL AT WOLVES

Aussie icon Jason Doyle made a winning racing return in Britain as he topped the podium in Sam Masters’ testimonial at Wolverhampton on Sunday. Doyle dropped just one point over his five heats to Speedway GP rival Freddie Lindgren, who made an emotional return to the Black Country track where he raced for 14 seasons. But the Newcastle-born ace got the better of Fast Freddie in the final, with seven-time British champion Scott Nicholls finishing third and double Swedish champion Jacob Thorssell fourth. Lindgren raced to 12 points over his five heats along with Thorssell, while Nicholls made it to the final the hard way after scoring 11 points, before winning the semi ahead of Steve Worrall, Luke Becker and Max Fricke. Fricke also picked up 11 points from his five heats, while Worrall impressed on 10 points. American international Becker notched nine. Lindgren also competed in Saturday’s Ben Fund Bonanza at King’s Lynn – scoring 12 points and just falling short of the final on countback. The final was won by former British champion Danny King, who qualified with 14 points. Danish racer Michael Palm Toft was second, with GB star Tom Brennan third and Richie Worrall placed fourth. The Ben Fund Bonanza is staged to raise vital cash for the Speedway Riders Benevolent Fund – a charity which offers crucial financial support to riders temporarily or permanently sidelined by speedway injuries.

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FIM SPEEDWAY TOP 5 MOMENTS | LATVIA

As speedway toasts its 100th anniversary season, FIMSpeedway.com is looking back at the biggest moments celebrated in each of our 2023 FIM Speedway nations. As the FIM Speedway GP of Latvia – Riga takes place in the capital for the very first time on Saturday, August 12, with the FIM Speedway of Nations – SON2 event on Friday, August 11, FIMSpeedway.com relives the top five moments in Latvian speedway history.   1. LATVIA STORMS TO 2021 SON FINAL Team Latvia had never reached an FIM Speedway world team final before the 2021 FIM Speedway of Nations Semi-Finals came to Daugavpils’ Lokomotiv Stadium. With a talented trio led by 2023 Speedway GP first reserve Andzejs Lebedevs, plus Olegs Mihailovs and rising star Francis Gusts, the hosts knew they would never have a better chance to make history on September 18, 2021. It was a chance they took in style as Mihailovs and Lebedevs sealed a 7-2 heat win over Ukraine in their final ride to send Daugavpils wild. Latvia took second place behind Australia in Semi-Final 2 to seal their passage to Manchester for the FIM SON Final. The team went on to finish sixth at Britain’s National Speedway Stadium, matching their best FIM Speedway World Cup performances from 2013 and 2017, when they were third in the Race Off. They will hope their historic FIM SON Final is the first of many.   2. LEBEDEVS CROWNED EUROPEAN CHAMPION IN 2017 While Latvia is waiting for its first FIM Speedway world champion, they have recently delivered a Speedway European Championship winner, with Andzejs Lebedevs topping the podium in 2017. After a four-round series, he finished seven points clear of future world champion Artem Laguta. Despite not winning any of the rounds, a third place at the opener in Polish city Torun was followed by three second places at German track Gustrow, Swedish venue Hallstavik and Polish circuit Lublin. It was a victory that put Lebedevs among the riders tipped for a future Speedway GP spot, although European champions have only received automatic qualification for the following year’s SGP series since the 2020 SEC season, won by Robert Lambert.   3. LATVIANS DUMP DENMARK OUT OF 2017 SWC If ever there was a moment that showed this brave speedway nation’s ability to punch well above its weight, it’s the night Latvia sent Denmark home from the 2017 FIM Speedway World Cup. After 20 heats at Event 2 in Vastervik, the Danes found themselves fighting for survival as they tied for third place on 28 points with Latvia. With only one of the teams able to advance to the Race Off in Polish city Leszno, Danish star Niels-Kristian Iversen was pitched into battle with Lebedevs over four tense laps. And Lebedevs prevailed – sending Hans Nielsen’s Danish team out as Latvia pulled off one of the biggest shocks in the tournament’s history.   4. POUDZUKS POWERS INTO THE SEMIS IN 2014 Latvian racer Kasts Puodzuks was handed an unexpected chance to shine in the 2014 FIM Speedway GP of Latvia – Daugavpils. Starting the day as first track reserve, he was promoted into the event minutes before tapes up when Aussie racer Darcy Ward was ruled out by the FIM after failing an alcohol test. Puodzuks may have been a late addition, but he had no intention of merely making up the numbers. A heat win, two seconds and two thirds fired him through to his first Speedway GP semi-final on nine points, before he picked up another point in the semis to finish on 10 championship points – placing him fifth in his home event. With only meeting winner Krzysztof Kasprzak, Nicki Pedersen in second, Greg Hancock in third and fourth-placed Kenneth Bjerre taking home more prize money, it’s a moment the local favourite will never forget.   5. YOUNG GUNS FIRE IN 2022 The future is bright for Latvian speedway, and the man who looks set to challenge Lebedevs to become the nation’s No.1 rider is Francis Gusts. Gusts came within half a lap of making history at the FIM SGP2 of Czech Republic – Prague last May, when Poland’s Mateusz Cierniak passed him on the final lap to steal victory away. While Latvia’s brightest talent missed out on becoming the first winner of an FIM Speedway Under-21 World Championship event staged under the SGP2 banner, he certainly underlined his potential to become a Speedway GP star. Gusts also led Latvia to fourth place in the FIM Speedway of Nations – SON2 event in Vojens on July 29, alongside Ricards Ansviesulis and Ernests Matjusonoks. Finishing on 28 points, they were pipped into the Grand Final Qualifier by Great Britain, who matched that total but won their head-to-head battle. But with second-placed Czech Republic only beating Latvia by one point on 29, it’s clear Latvia is a nation getting ever closer to its first medal in the FIM Team Speedway Under-21 World Championship.

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LINDGREN "A BIT NERVOUS" FOR WOLVES HOMECOMING

Swedish racer Freddie Lindgren spent 14 seasons racing on Wolverhampton’s Monmore Green circuit, but admits he will be “a bit nervous” as he makes an emotional return on Sunday. The world No.4 is in the UK this weekend, competing in Saturday’s Ben Fund Bonanza at King’s Lynn (5pm start) – a vital event which raises cash to support riders sidelined temporarily or permanently by speedway injuries. He will then head to Wolverhampton for former teammate Sam Masters’ testimonial meeting on Sunday (3pm start), where he is set to receive a huge welcome from the Black Country crowd. Lindgren cemented his status as a Wolves legend, racing 14 seasons in their colours from 2003 until 2017 – missing only the 2014 campaign. He led the club to Elite League glory in 2009 and the SGB Premiership title in 2016. Despite racing the Monmore Green track better than almost any rider in the world for much of his stay, Lindgren admits he will have to reacclimatise to the notoriously tight and technical 264-metre track after five years away. He said: “When you haven’t raced these small, tricky tracks and you have mainly been on the continent on the big, wide-open tracks, you need to adapt. We will see how I can adapt, but I hope I can do it. “I am both looking forward to it and a bit nervous. I look forward to coming back to Wolverhampton to see all the fans and all the friends I have there. I haven’t been there for six years. That’s quite remarkable when you consider I spent 14 seasons there – that’s a lot of time in my life.” Lindgren remains a huge favourite in the UK and there’s no doubt fans would love to see him back in the SGB Premiership. But the rider is sitting out Sweden’s Bauhaus Elitserien and only racing for Polish side Lublin alongside his Speedway GP commitments this year. Having opted for a lighter schedule to aid his recovery from long Covid, he admits now is not the time for a British comeback. “For now, I would say no,” he said. “But at some point? I would never say never. I have always enjoyed racing in Britain, so we will see.” The Orebro-born ace also looks forward to headlining Saturday’s Ben Fund Bonanza, which also features GB star Tom Brennan, plus former British champions Danny King and Charles Wright. Double Swedish champion Jacob Thorssell, Steve and Richie Worrall, Kyle Howarth, Ben Barker, Lewis Kerr, Justin Sedgmen, Paul Starke, Michael Palm Toft, Simon Lambert, Jason Edwards and Connor Mountain are also in action. “The Ben Fund is a really good cause,” Lindgren said. “When you have a hard or long-term injury, it’s good to be able to get some help and hopefully they can raise some money for that cause.”

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VACULIK: MEETING SGP HEROES IN PRAGUE INSPIRED ME

Slovak star Martin Vaculik admits meeting his heroes in Prague as a kid inspired him to become an FIM Speedway GP of Czech Republic winner in 2022. Vaculik sent the Marketa Stadium wild last May, when he topped the podium ahead of former Prague winners Tai Woffinden and Jason Doyle. Given that no Czech rider has won Speedway GP’s longest-running round since it launched in 1997, Vaculik’s win was the closest the event has come to delivering a home winner, and an army of fans followed their hero across the border from neighbouring Slovakia to see him triumph. Vaculik grew up watching the sport and eventually racing in Prague as he competed for his hometown club Zarnovica in the Czech league. And he admits the chance to rub shoulders with the Speedway GP superstars in Prague once a year only made him hungrier to achieve his racing dreams. Remembering his first Marketa Stadium SGP event, he revealed: “I think it was 2003, when I was 13 that I went there with my father for the Speedway GP. I remember having a picture with Greg Hancock, Tony Rickardsson, Tomasz Gollob and Jason Crump and all these stars. “I remember standing on one side of the fence and Greg was on the other. But he took a picture with me – us and the fence! “It was a good memory and when I was racing with him in Tarnow in Poland about a decade ago, I showed him this picture and we were laughing about that. I told him, ‘You see Greg! Dreams come true!’ Then we were racing together, and it was amazing. “It’s amazing how all this stuff happens. It’s fantastic. We have spoken about that early meeting many times. It was a nice memory.” Joining Hancock in the club of Prague winners was a special moment for Vaculik last season. He added: “Winning the Prague Grand Prix is always something special. The Speedway GP there is simply special. I am very pleased I won the meeting there because it’s a very hard Grand Prix. “That place is also really sentimental for me. Prague is one of my favourite places in the world. That win was like a launchpad for us for the rest of the season, with good results, a good setup and good equipment. It was a turning point for me.”

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