Max Fricke wins dramatic Speedway Grand Prix of Poland in front of 50,000 fans in Warsaw
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ByEurosport
Updated 14/05/2022 at 20:43 GMT
A restarted final in Warsaw saw Australian Max Fricke cruise to a stunning victory on a thrilling night of racing in Poland. Fricke won the final ahead of Leon Madsen and Fredrik Lindgren. The 50,000-strong home support missed out on seeing a hometown winner after Bartosz Zmarzlik and Maciej Janowski went out in the semis.
'Had to do it the hard way' - Fricke wins thrilling SGP in Warsaw
Max Fricke took a shock win at the FIM Speedway Grand Prix in Poland in front of a massive crowd of 50,000 fans. It looked as if it would be Bartosz Zmarzlik’s to lose after a stellar performance during Friday night's qualifying.
Going into race day, Zmarzlik stormed to the top of the standings after 20 heats but hadn’t done it easily. Maciej Janowski and Leon Madsen had given the Polish rider a tough time all evening, but as the evening went on, the pair dropped off, leaving Zmarzlik on top.
Fricke had snuck himself into the top eight after a disappointing start to his evening and took to the track to compete in the first semi-final of the night against Zmarzlik, Pawel Przedpelski and Fredrik Lindgren.
Zmarzlik stormed ahead but a costly mistake allowed Fricke to get by. It looked as if Zmarzlik would get second, but another mistake left Zmarzlik heartbroken and out of the finals. Fricke was a shock entry to the decider, along with Lindgren.
The second semi-final saw both Tai Woffinden and crucially for the 50,000-strong home support, Janowski miss out of the final, meaning no Polish rider could compete for the win. Mikkel Michelsen and Madsen flew the Danish flag in the final four.
The final showdown between Fricke, Michelsen, Madsen and Lindgren didn’t go down smoothly. Fricke went flying out of the gates, but the race was red-flagged due to contact between Michelsen and Madsen.
Michelsen went flying off his bike, but was ultimately found at fault for the collision and was excluded from the final.
Just like the first attempt, Fricke flew out of the gate and never looked back, sailing away to his first win of the year. Madsen was able to claim second, and Lindgren was third-placed on the night.
Championship Standings After Two Races
1 - Bartosz Zmarzlik (Poland) 32pts
2 - Leon Madsen (Denmark) 30pts
3 - Mikkel Michelsen (Denmark) 30pts
4 - Maciej Janowski (Poland) 29pts
5 - Fredrik Lindgren (Sweden) 24pts
6 - Max Fricke (Australia) 22pts
7 - Robert Lambert (United Kingdom) 18pts
8 - Jason Doyle (Australia) 15pts
9 - Anders Thomsen (Denmark) 15pts
10 - Tai Woffinden (United Kingdom) 10pts
11 - Matej Zagar (Slovakia) 11pts
12 - Pawel Przedpelski (Poland) 10pts
13 - Jack Holder (Australia) 10pts
14 - Patryk Dudek (Poland) 10pts
15 - Martin Vaculik (Slovakia) 9pts
16 - Dan Bewley (United Kingdom)9pts
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The 2022 Speedway Grand Prix will be available live and ad-free on discovery+. with live race action also on Eurosport 2.
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