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EKSTRALIGA | PEDERSEN ROARS BACK WITH 18-POINT MAX

Danish icon Nicki Pedersen delivered another astonishing show of defiance as he returned to the shale after his SGB Premiership crash to rack up an 18-point maximum for Grudziadz in their PGE Ekstraliga opener on Saturday. Back on track after crashing in Peterborough’s opening home meeting on March 27, Pedersen led his side to a 45-45 draw at home to Czestochowa, winning an epic heat-15 showdown ahead of Lions’ world No.2 Leon Madsen to earn Grudziadz a point. Most 46-year-old riders are winding down their careers or considering their next move in life. Pedersen may have been named Danish team manager for 2023 and launched his own reality TV show on Discovery+ Denmark, but he proved his main role in life is still world-class speedway rider. Madsen raced to 13 points for Czestochowa in a solid start to his 2023 league season, with Pedersen the only rider to beat him. Polish star Maksym Drabik recorded nine paid 11 on his Lions debut, while Speedway GP star Mikkel Michelsen collected eight paid 10. Junior star Franciszek Karczewski turned heads with an impressive eight points. Pedersen was supported by eight paid nine from both Aussie ace Max Fricke and Gleb Chugunov. In the day’s other meeting, Great Britain racer Robert Lambert topped the Torun scorechart on 11 paid 13 points as they triumphed 47-43 over Gorzow at the Marian Rose Motoarena. Despite a win for Gorzow’s Slovak star Martin Vaculik in heat 15, Emil Sayfutdinov and Lambert teamed up for a 3-3 that secured the points. Sayfutdinov ended his PGE Ekstraliga comeback with 11 paid 12, while Speedway GP rider Patryk Dudek notched nine paid 10 and Pawel Przedpelski added seven paid eight. Vaculik led the Gorzow scorechart on 11 paid 12 points, while debutant Oskar Fajfer accrued nine and former Polish champion Szymon Wozniak scored eight paid 10. Anders Thomsen bagged seven paid nine points. Leszno hosts newly promoted Krosno in Sunday’s PGE Ekstraliga match, with the blockbuster fixture between Lublin and Wroclaw postponed due to rain.

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MICHELSEN CHASING HISTORY WITH CZESTOCHOWA

Danish racer Mikkel Michelsen is determined to make more history with new PGE Ekstraliga club Czestochowa as he makes his debut away to Grudziadz this evening. The world’s biggest speedway league gets started with an Easter Saturday programme, which also sees Torun host Gorzow, before Leszno welcomes newly promoted Krosno on Sunday. Michelsen’s move from 2022 PGE Ekstraliga champions Lublin to Czestochowa was one of the biggest of the winter. The double Speedway European Championship winner helped his old club to the first top-flight title in their history last year and admits he leaves Lublin with great memories. But now he is focused on ending Czestochowa’s wait for a first PGE Ekstraliga title since 2003. He said: “It is a new season now and a new year. I am at a new club, and I am obviously looking to do everything I can for Czestochowa to make some history too because it has been 20 years since they won their last gold medal. “We are a medal contender for sure – but we want to be in that final. It’s a long season. For starters, you need to make the play-offs and then we will see where we go from there.” Michelsen has great memories of his four-year stay with Lublin, which saw him establish himself among the best riders in the world since he joined them in 2019, before leading the club to PGE Ekstraliga glory. Asked why he made the switch to the Lions, he said: “We just weren’t able to find common ground when we were talking with each other. “I was very happy at Lublin, and I am beyond grateful for all the love and support I had there from the fans. It was insane. I have never experienced anything like that. I was sad to leave. But you need to find some common ground and we just weren’t able to find that. “I had this option. It seemed good and it seemed like the right time to try something new. I am sure there are a lot of fans who don’t agree with me and there are a lot of things that have been said in the press from various people. I have just stayed out of it. At the end of the day, it is history now. “I enjoyed my four years in Lublin, and I am beyond grateful for everything they have done for me and what I have been able to achieve with the club. “Czestochowa is close to home. I live in Rybnik and Czestochowa is one hour away. I have had a good relationship with the club since 2015 or 2016, and I have been practising there a lot in the past.”

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NICHOLLS STEPS IN FOR WOLVES

Seven-time British champion Scott Nicholls is back in the SGB Premiership after being snapped up by Wolverhampton. The former Speedway GP rider and now pits reporter steps in for American international Luke Becker, who is nursing a broken leg, suffered in the Slovakian Open Championship in Zarnovica last Sunday. Nicholls scored an 11 paid 12-point maximum as a guest in Wolves’ 56-34 victory over King’s Lynn on Monday. He also reached the rostrum in Sam Masters’ testimonial at Monmore Green on March 26. After seeing Nicholls make a fine start to the season, Wolves promoter Chris Van Straaten wasted no time in signing up the Oxford doubling-up man as Becker begins his recovery. He said: “We’re absolutely delighted to have Scott back on board and it was a bit of a no-brainer to be honest. “Luke will be undergoing further appointments with specialists, and he’s going to be out for at least the next month or so. “And with Scott making the start to the season that he has, and with the experience he can add to the team, we simply couldn’t let the opportunity pass us by while it was available to us.”

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JAKOBSEN TRIUMPHS IN DANISH SPEEDWAY GP QUALIFIER AT VOJENS

Danish shooting star Frederik Jakobsen has taken a step closer to the FIM Speedway Grand Prix series after winning the country’s SGP qualifier at Vojens on Wednesday. Jakobsen will now take his place in the Speedway GP international qualifiers after topping the podium on 14 points at Denmark’s national speedway stadium – venue for the FIM Speedway GP of Denmark – Vojens on September 16. Former Speedway GP rider Michael Jepsen Jensen also moved closer to securing a return to the sport’s elite after taking second place on 13, while 2021 FIM Speedway Under-21 World Championship runner-up Mads Hansen was third on 11. Former world No.3 Niels-Kristian Iversen’s hopes of getting back into the Speedway GP series were boosted after he won a run-off for fourth place with Andreas Lyager to take the fourth guaranteed spot. They tied on 10 points. But Lyager will also enter the Speedway GP qualifiers after national coach Nicki Pedersen opted to hand him Denmark’s last spot in the international rounds as a wild card. The international rounds take place at Slovakian circuit Zarnovica and Italian track Lonigo on May 27, with two further qualifiers at Hungarian venue Debrecen and German circuit Abensberg on May 29. The top three or four riders in these events advance to the FIM GP Challenge at Swedish club Gislaved – home of Bauhaus Elitserien team Lejonen – on August 19. The top three riders in one of world speedway’s hardest-fought meetings earn places in the 2024 Speedway GP series. Denmark’s five qualified riders will also represent their nation in the Speedway European Championship qualifiers for this summer’s four-round series. The European champion earns a guaranteed place in the 2024 Speedway GP series. Last year’s title was won by Danish hero Leon Madsen. But with the SEC champion also finishing second in Speedway GP, the SGP spot Madsen earned for winning the continental title passed to a wild card, chosen by the SGP Commission. Photo: John Bo Jensen

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FIVE-ROUND AUSSIE CHAMPIONSHIP REVEALED FOR 2024

The 2024 Australian Championship will open at North Brisbane and conclude in Adelaide as dates for the five-round series were revealed. This year’s competition saw Speedway GP star Jack Holder win his first national senior title after an epic duel with 2017 world champion Jason Doyle, who won the opening three rounds, but just lost out at the title decider in North Brisbane. Triple Aussie champion Max Fricke took third place overall. The Queensland venue, where events are promoted by former Speedway GP icon Darcy Ward, will host the 2024 opener on January 4. The action then switches to New South Wales circuit Kurri Kurri on January 7 – less than a month after speedway celebrates the 100th anniversary of the sport’s first meeting at nearby Maitland Showgrounds on December 15. Victorian club Albury Wodonga is the venue for round three on January 9, before the action moves to the iconic Mildura, which returns to the calendar on January 11 after floods in the surrounding area forced the cancellation of the 2023 round there. Adelaide circuit Gillman then provides the stage where the 2024 Australian champion will be crowned on January 13.

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EKSTRALIGA | PEDERSEN ROARS BACK WITH 18-POINT MAX

MICHELSEN CHASING HISTORY WITH CZESTOCHOWA

NICHOLLS STEPS IN FOR WOLVES

JAKOBSEN TRIUMPHS IN DANISH SPEEDWAY GP QUALIFIER AT VOJENS

FIVE-ROUND AUSSIE CHAMPIONSHIP REVEALED FOR 2024