Martin Vaculik

Slovakia’s first and only FIM Speedway Grand Prix star Martin Vaculik made an unforgettable World Championship debut, when he won the 2012 FIM Gorzow Speedway GP after replacing the injured Jaroslaw Hampel in the meeting.

Vaculik was handed a place in the 2013 series, but was then absent from the Speedway GP line-up for three seasons, before re-qualifying as runner-up at the 2016 FIM GP Challenge in Vetlanda, Sweden.

History repeated itself as Vaculik won on his comeback at the 2017 FIM Slovenian Speedway GP in Krsko. He topped the podium at the 2018 FIM Gorzow Speedway GP – just four months after suffering a serious ankle injury at British track Swindon.

Vaculik took a career-best fifth place in the 2019 World Championship, but finished ninth in 2020, before an injury-hit campaign left him 12th in 2021.

 

He finished ninth in another injury-affected 2022 season. But he ended the year with two Speedway GP wins to his name after topping the rostrum in both Prague and Torun, before making it back-to-back Prague FIM Czech Speedway GP wins in 2023 and adding an FIM British Speedway GP victory in Cardiff.