MAGIC MOMENT FOR JANOWSKI AS POLES SEAL NINTH MONSTER ENERGY FIM SWC WORLD TITLE IN WROCLAW

Polish hero Maciej Janowski admits he “exploded” with emotion after sealing victory in an historic Monster Energy FIM Speedway World Cup Final thriller in Wroclaw on Saturday.

In one of the greatest world team finals in the sport’s 100-year history, Poland, Great Britain and Denmark went into a last-heat decider all in contention for gold in the first Monster Energy FIM SWC since 2017.

After an epic wheel-to-wheel battle with GB hero Robert Lambert, Janowski dived under his Speedway GP rival to snatch the all-important second place behind Australia’s Max Fricke in heat 20 which earned Poland a record-breaking ninth gold medal – 18 years after they first lifted the iconic Ove Fundin Trophy in Wroclaw in 2005.

Janowski’s heroic pass sent the Polish team and fans wild as the legendary Olympic Stadium was shaken to its foundations as Poland triumphed on 33 points, with GB finishing second on 31, Denmark third on 29 and Australia fourth on 27 after the closest Final in living memory.

After watching Poland win their first FIM SWC as a child from the Wroclaw terraces, Janowski could not contain his delight as he crossed the finish line for his fourth Monster Energy FIM SWC gold medal. 

Despite taking on one of the most high-pressure rides of his career, Janowski insists he felt composed heading into his last-heat showdown, before picking his way past Lambert with typical ice-cool composure.

He said: “To be honest, I was pretty chilled going into the last race. I knew the changes we had made for the last heat gave me not-so-bad speed. It was maybe not working the best on the outside, but when I moved to the inside, I felt I could be in that fight for second position.

“The boys were fighting each other, and I thought I could maybe use the gap. I saw the gap at the end of the third lap. I used a good line, and it was actually working. 

“Big thanks to the rest of the teams because I think we showed great racing. It was very emotional. I think for the fans, it was amazing. That’s why they come to the stadium – to get those emotions and get that feeling. For us, it was also good. A win is a win, and it doesn’t matter how you get it.

“We found enough to fight for the gold and get it. We were calm; no stress about anything. Everyone did their job, and I am glad.” 

Having gone from cheering on the sport’s biggest stars at the Olympic Stadium to writing his name in speedway history, Janowski admits his epic journey over the past 18 years is proof that dreams can come true.

The world No.3 said: “I will just say what I always say to young people; believe in your dreams, follow your dreams and never let anyone put you down when it comes to chasing your dreams. You can do whatever you want. If Magic can win another gold with the team, anyone can do whatever they want.”

Joint GB team manager Oliver Allen is delighted with how much his Lions have progressed since the Brits struggled to fourth place at the last Monster Energy FIM SWC Final staged in Leszno in 2017.

Having won 2021 FIM Speedway of Nations gold in Manchester, followed by the FIM SON silver medals in Vojens last year, the Lions have now extended their run in the world’s top two to three straight seasons as Lambert, Dan Bewley, Tai Woffinden, Tom Brennan and Adam Ellis starred for GB.

But Allen admits missing out on what would have been their first gold medal over the four-team format since 1989 was tough to take.

He said: “Simon and I are really lucky to have the job at the time we do, when we have three top riders. It was a good result. If you had asked me six years ago whether a silver medal would be good in Poland, I would have said yes. But after tonight, it feels not so good.

“It was a fantastic advert for speedway and anyone who watched that meeting would have been fascinated by the sport. It was a really good event – it went down to the last race between three teams.

“We thought it was going to be tight and it never looked like anyone was pulling away. I know we started the meeting well, but we knew we had this block of gates where we had gate three three times. We dropped points there.

“It was really tight, really good racing and congratulations to Poland and Denmark for a good meeting.” 

Danish star Leon Madsen admits a sluggish start cost the Danes as they bagged the bronze medal in triple world champion Nicki Pedersen’s first tournament as rider-manager.

He said: “We got the start we didn’t want to get. It was a terrible start for Team Denmark. In the first four races, we only scored three points.

“It couldn’t have been a more catastrophic start to the meeting, but we kept being positive and kept working together. We fought our way through and finally we managed to find better setups and get back into the meeting.

“We battled all the way, and it was very tight all the way to the end. I predicted that before the meeting that it could go down to the wire, and it did. It was a fantastic meeting for everyone – the sport as well. It was an incredible meeting in a great atmosphere. Hats off to the Poles. They did very well, and they deserved the win on the night.” 

With the Monster Energy FIM SWC coming to a thrilling finale, the action switches back to Speedway GP, with the OlyBet FIM Speedway GP of Latvia – Riga coming to Bikernieki for the first time on Saturday, August 12, with the Latvian capital also staging FIM Speedway of Nations – SON2 for the sport’s top under-21 teams on Friday, August 11.

MONSTER ENERGY FIM SWC FINAL SCORES:

1. POLAND 33: 1 Bartosz Zmarzlik 11, 2 Patryk Dudek 6, 3 Maciej Janowski 7, 4 Dominik Kubera 9, 5 Janusz Kolodziej 0.

2. GREAT BRITAIN 31: 1 Tom Brennan 0, 2 Robert Lambert 12, 3 Tai Woffinden 7, 4 Adam Ellis 3, 5 Dan Bewley 9.

3. DENMARK 29: 1 Leon Madsen 9, 2 Rasmus Jensen 13, 3 Mikkel Michelsen 2, 4 Nicki Pedersen 0, 5 Anders Thomsen 5.

4. AUSTRALIA 27: 1 Max Fricke 7, 2 Jack Holder 8, 3 Jason Doyle 10, 4 Jaimon Lidsey 1, 5 Chris Holder 1.