2024 SWEDISH FINAL SET FOR VASTERVIK

Vastervik has been confirmed as host club for the 2024 Swedish Championship Final on Tuesday, May 28.Staged just two and a half weeks before the FIM Speedway GP of Sweden – Malilla on June 15, the Vastervik showdown could see world No.2 Fredrik Lindgren chase a fourth national crown on his old home track after he won title No.3 in Malilla in 2023.Vastervik rider Jacob Thorssell finished second last year and will be determined to claim his third crown on home shale.Vastervik sports manager and Swedish national coach Morgan Andersson is delighted to play host to the Swedish Final, as well as the Swedish Youth 250cc Final, which will also take place at the Hejla Arena on a date to be confirmed.He said: “We are very honoured to have been awarded these two finals by SVEMO. This is completely in line with us organising a competition per year in addition to our league matches, offering our loyal audience and sponsors something extra.“We will try to raise the status of the individual Swedish Championship Final so that we get back the crowds we used to have, and we already have some ideas on how to proceed.”SVEMO track racing sports manager Mikael Karlsson commented: “We are very happy to award Vastervik the individual Swedish Championship Final and the Swedish Youth Final for 250cc riders in 2024. The club has shown over the years that it is a professional organiser of both national and international major competitions, and we look forward to another very good event.”

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TUNGATE STUNS FRICKE TO SNATCH AUSSIE CHAMPIONSHIP GLORY

Oxford star Rohan Tungate stormed to his second Australian Championship crown after overturning Max Fricke’s five-point advantage on a dramatic night at Adelaide track Gillman on Saturday.Triple Aussie champion Fricke went into the fifth and final round as red-hot favourite to lift the trophy, but his title bid was derailed when he scored just two points in his opening three heats – in a series where race points convert to championship points. An exclusion following a clash with Tungate in race two was followed by two third places for Fricke. In contrast, Tungate blazed through his opening four rides unbeaten to score 12 points, before making it 13 with third place behind Jaimon Lidsey and Ben Cook in race 18.Fricke produced a miraculous fightback to win his final two heats, sending him into the semi-finals and leaving him level with Tungate on 67 overall.The pair met in a stellar semi-final one, which also featured brothers Jack and Chris Holder. Both were desperate for final qualification, Tungate took a priceless victory as the Holders left Fricke stranded at the back and out of the meeting. This meant Tungate only had to finish the final to add to the Aussie title he won in 2018, and he delivered more than the fourth place required.Brady Kurtz ended a great night on a high with victory in the final – his second straight round win after topping the Mildura podium on Thursday – as he claimed fifth place in the championship overall on 57 points.But second was enough to leave Tungate on 70 points – three clear of Fricke, whose eight-point tally left him heartbroken on 67 in second.A tense battle for bronze ended in a run-off between Speedway GP star Jack Holder and 2020 World Under-21 champion Jaimon Lidsey. Jack tallied 12 points in the heats with Lidsey registering 11, but the Belle Vue man pipped the world No.4 to third place in the final, leaving them level on 61 overall. Holder came out on top in the run-off, securing third place overall. But Lidsey can console himself with a spot in the Speedway GP qualifiers as he joins new champion Tungate, Fricke and Jack Holder in entering the international rounds, which culminate in the FIM GP Challenge at Czech track Pardubice on October 4. The top three riders on the city’s famous Golden Helmet weekend earn guaranteed spots in the 2025 Speedway GP series.There is one more Speedway GP qualification spot up for grabs in Australia. This will be handed to the highest-placed Aussie representative in the FIM Oceania Championship at Gillman on January 27.FINAL AUSTRALIAN CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS: 1 Rohan Tungate 70, 2 Max Fricke 67, 3 Jack Holder 61+3, 4 Jaimon Lidsey 61+2, 5 Brady Kurtz 57, 6 Ben Cook 42, 7 Chris Holder 42, 8 Josh Pickering 41, 9 Sam Masters 41, 10 Ryan Douglas 40, 12 Zach Cook 28, 12 Keynan Rew 22, 13 James Pearson 18, 14 Michael West 14, 15 Fraser Bowes 11, 16 Justin Sedgmen 9, 17 Tate Zischke 5, 18 Jye Etheridge 4, 19 Jack Morrison 3, 20 Jake Turner 1.GILLMAN HEAT SCORES: 1 Rohan Tungate 13, 2 Brady Kurtz 13, 3 Jack Holder 12, 4 Jaimon Lidsey 11, 5 Chris Holder 11, 6 Ben Cook 10, 7 Max Fricke 8, 8 Sam Masters 7, 9 Josh Pickering 7, 10 Michael West 7, 11 Keynan Rew 5, 12 Ryan Douglas 4, 13 Zach Cook 4, 14 Fraser Bowes 3, 15 James Pearson 3, 16 Jake Turner 1, 17 Jack Morrison 0, 18 Dayle Wood DNR. SEMI-FINAL 1: Tungate, J Holder, C Holder, Fricke.SEMI-FINAL 2: Lidsey, Kurtz, B Cook, Masters.FINAL: Kurtz, Tungate, Lidsey, J Holder.RUN-OFF FOR THIRD PLACE: J Holder, Lidsey.PHOTO: Australian Speedway Championships Facebook page

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FIM SPEEDWAY GOLDEN MOMENTS | CROATIA

As the bikes warm up for the 2024 season, FIMSpeedway.com editor Paul Burbidge takes a look back at some of the biggest moments that have taken place at our FIM Speedway venues.We kick off with Donji Kraljevec’s Speedway Stadium Milenium – home of the FIM Speedway GP of Croatia on April 27.For a nation with only one speedway track, Croatia punches well above its weight when it comes to delivering historic nights.The Warner Bros. Discovery Sports era was launched at Speedway Stadion Milenium with a Speedway GP won by Bartosz Zmarzlik. Incredibly, the Pole has led the World Championship ever since that night on April 30, 2022, and has doubled his world title tally from two to four.But we’re winding back the clock to two incredible moments in 2010 and 2011, when American great Greg Hancock told the speedway world he wouldn’t be slipping quietly into retirement.Hancock arrived in Croatia in August 2010, having reached just one final in the first seven rounds that year. At this point, he needed a strong finish to the season just to retain his spot in the series.The stakes were high for local organisers as Speedway Stadion Milenium staged its first-ever SGP round – on the weekend of owner Zvonimir Pavlic’s 50th birthday. It wasn’t quite the celebration he had hoped to enjoy. Rain struck on the Saturday night, delaying the FIM Croatian Speedway GP to Sunday afternoon. But it was worth the wait for Hancock. He revelled on a hot and dusty afternoon to deliver top spot ahead of Great Britain star Chris Harris in second and then world champion Jason Crump in third.

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FRICKE GOES FIVE CLEAR IN AUSSIE TITLE RACE AS KURTZ TOPS MILDURA PODIUM

Triple champion Max Fricke took a stride closer to Australian Championship No.4, while former champion Brady Kurtz topped the podium at round four in Mildura on Thursday.Kurtz saw off Fricke in second place and Kurri Kurri winner Rohan Tungate in third to triumph in the final at Olympic Park.Victory pushed the Belle Vue Aces star up to fifth place in the overall standings as he collected 16 points on the night. But Speedway GP first reserve Fricke gathered 16 of his own to extend his pre-meeting championship lead over Tungate from two points to five.Fricke raced to 13 points in the heats with Tungate registering 11 after the Oxford signing failed to score in his opening ride. And two-time Speedway GP winner Fricke extended the advantage in the final, collecting a further three points for second, with Tungate having to make do with two for third.World No.4 Jack Holder was in the hunt for victory after topping the heat scorechart on 13 points. But disaster struck in the final when he fell on the opening lap and was excluded, meaning he did not even collect the consolation championship point for fourth place.Fricke heads to the title decider at Adelaide track Gillman this Saturday on 59 points overall, requiring 15 championship points to be certain of his fourth Aussie title.Tungate, second on 54, is the only rider with a realistic chance of denying him, but he will need a near-perfect performance at Gillman, coupled with a stumble from Fricke, to add to the Aussie title he won in 2018.Holder and Lidsey, tied on 48 points in third and fourth respectively, appear likely to fight over the bronze medal – unless Kurtz continues his late surge – and they will be determined to capitalise on any slip-ups from Tungate, who has a six-point advantage in the race for second place.The top four riders will be guaranteed places in the 2025 Speedway GP international qualifying rounds this May, where riders will compete for a spot in the FIM GP Challenge at Czech track Pardubice on October 4. The top three riders there secure a pass into the 2025 Speedway GP line-up.Fricke is just one point away from being mathematically certain of a Speedway GP qualification place, while Tungate needs six and Holder and Lidsey can guarantee their places with 12 points in Gillman.AUSTRALIAN CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (AFTER ROUND 4/5): 1 Max Fricke 59, 2 Rohan Tungate 54, 3 Jack Holder 48, 4 Jaimon Lidsey 48, 5 Brady Kurtz 40, 6 Ryan Douglas 36, 7 Josh Pickering 34, 8 Sam Masters 34, 9 Ben Cook 32, 10 Chris Holder 31, 11 Zach Cook 24, 12 Keynan Rew 17, 13 James Pearson 15, 14 Justin Sedgmen 9, 15 Fraser Bowes 8, 16 Michael West 7, 17 Tate Zischke 5, 18 Jye Etheridge 4, 19 Jack Morrison 3.MILDURA HEAT SCORES: 1 Jack Holder 13, 2 Max Fricke 13, 3 Jaimon Lidsey 12, 4 Brady Kurtz 12, 5 Rohan Tungate 11, 6 Sam Masters 10, 7 Justin Sedgmen 9, 8 Ben Cook 8, 9 Ryan Douglas 7, 10 Josh Pickering 7, 11 Zach Cook 5, 12 Chris Holder 4, 13 Keynan Rew 4, 14 Fraser Bowes 4, 15 Michael West 1, 16 James Pearson 0, 17 Jack Morrison DNR, 18 Dayle Wood DNR, 19 Jake Turner DNR.SEMI-FINAL 1: Tungate, J Holder, Lidsey, Sedgmen (ret).SEMI-FINAL 2: Kurtz, Fricke, Masters, B Cook.FINAL: Kurtz, Fricke, Tungate, J Holder (f exc).

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DANISH STARS LAUNCH 2025 SPEEDWAY GP QUALIFYING CAMPAIGN AT VOJENS

Denmark’s top riders will bid to take a step closer to the 2025 FIM Speedway Grand Prix series as Vojens Speedway Center hosts the nation’s Speedway GP and 2024 Speedway European Championship qualifier on April 16.Four places in the Speedway GP and SEC international qualifiers will be up for grabs at the home of the FIM Speedway GP of Denmark – Vojens, with national coach Nicki Pedersen also set to nominate two wild cards in addition.It is unclear whether Speedway GP duo Leon Madsen and Mikkel Michelsen will opt to take part, or instead focus on their bid to gain automatic qualification for 2025 by finishing in this year’s Speedway GP World Championship top six. Both riders also compete in the 2024 SEC series, in which the European champion is guaranteed a spot in next year’s Speedway GP elite. Michelsen claimed that place for this season by winning the 2023 SEC title – sealing a record-breaking third European crown.Vojens has confirmed, however, that former Speedway GP winner Anders Thomsen will start his bid to regain his SGP spot in the Vojens qualifier, with 2022 Danish champion Rasmus Jensen also set to be among the contenders.The Speedway GP international qualifiers for the 2025 series take place at German track Abensberg and Hungarian circuit Debrecen on May 20, with Italian venue Lonigo and Slovak track Zarnovica staging two more rounds on May 25. The top riders from these meetings will line up in the FIM GP Challenge on Czech track Pardubice’s iconic Golden Helmet weekend on Friday, October 4, where the top three riders qualify for the 2025 Speedway GP series.The SEC qualifiers for the 2024 series get underway at Debrecen and Austrian venue Mureck on May 1, with two more rounds at German track Stralsund and former FIM Slovenian Speedway GP venue Krsko on May 4. The top riders in these events qualify for the SEC Challenge at former FIM Latvian Speedway GP circuit Daugavpils on May 12, where the leading five riders will seal places in this year’s SEC field.

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