A new era of FIM Speedway begins for the sport’s brightest young stars as the Prague FIM SGP2 of Czech Republic comes to the iconic Marketa Stadium on Friday.
As part of its 10-year vision to elevate the sport and develop a new generation of riders, new global promoter Discovery Sports Events has brought the FIM Speedway Under-21 and Under-16 World Championships under the SGP umbrella, rebranding them as SGP2 and SGP3 respectively.
The SGP2 title race starts this Friday – the night before Saturday’s Prague FIM Speedway GP of Czech Republic.
Friday’s SGP2 showdown sees 18 of the sport’s most promising under-21s line up on the historic Marketa Stadium circuit, where Speedway GP action has taken place every year since 1997.
A host of the sport’s Speedway GP world champions including FIM Speedway global ambassador Tony Rickardsson, Greg Hancock, Jason Crump, Nicki Pedersen, Tai Woffinden, Bartosz Zmarzlik, Tomasz Gollob and Jason Doyle have all topped the podium in Prague. And now it’s the turn of the SGP2 stars to begin their journey to the top.
THE CONTENDERS
Poland is well represented in the SGP2 field, with 2021 FIM Speedway Under-21 world champion Jakub Miskowiak bidding to become only the fourth rider after Emil Sayfutdinov, Darcy Ward and Maksym Drabik to become a double world junior champion.
But the Czestochowa rider faces stiff competition from the likes of Wiktor Lampart and Mateusz Swidnicki, who finished third and fourth respectively in the 2021 championship.
Series newcomer Mateusz Cierniak will also be out to make an impact after finishing second at round two of the 2021 series in Krosno as a wild card.
The Poles come up against three talented home stars in Czech trio Jan Kvech, Daniel Klima and Peter Chlupac, who all race for the Prague club.
Kvech booked his place in the series with victory at a very tough qualifier in Gislaved, Sweden on May 7, and also races in the Prague FIM Speedway GP of Czech Republic as a wild card.
Danish racer Kevin Juhl Pedersen will be bidding to build on a sensational display in the qualifiers, after topping the podium in Daugavpils, Latvia with a 15-point maximum. His compatriot Jonas Knudsen will hope to follow up his FIM Speedway 250cc Youth world-title win in Prague in 2017 with another stellar performance.
Finland’s Timi Salonen will also hope to race his way among the frontrunners after a sensational start to his league season with Gorzow’s PGE Ekstraliga under-24 team in Poland.
MAKING HISTORY
One rider who is guaranteed to make history this Friday is Germany’s Celina Liebmann, who becomes the first female rider to compete in an FIM Speedway final series.
Liebmann, daughter of former German ice racing international Jurgen Liebmann, was handed the wild card by local organisers after impressing at her SGP2 qualifier in Daugavpils on May 7, scoring a very solid six points and beating a host of riders who race regularly in Europe’s top leagues.
The 20-year-old also raced in the Polish Second Division for German club Wittstock in 2021 and currently represents a host of clubs across Germany’s many competitions.
Liebmann’s historic call-up has generated huge media interest around the world as she bids to blaze a trail for female riders in a male-dominated sport.
PRAGUE FIM SGP2 OF CZECH REPUBLIC LINE-UP
196 Kevin Juhl Pedersen (Denmark)
2 Francis Gusts (Latvia)
201 Jan Kvech (Czech Republic)
717 Daniel Klima (Czech Republic)
43 Casper Henriksson (Sweden)
108 Mateusz Swidnicki (Poland)
842 Mateusz Cierniak (Poland)
515 Jakub Miskowiak (Poland)
408 Jonas Knudsen (Denmark)
47 Wiktor Lampart (Poland)
505 Wiktor Przyjemski (Poland)
44 Petr Chlupac (Czech Republic)
281 Timi Salonen (Finland)
92 Benjamin Basso (Denmark)
118 Gustav Grahn (Sweden)
16 Celina Liebmann (Germany)
17 Matous Kamenik (Czech Republic)
18 Bruno Belan (Czech Republic)
WHERE TO WATCH
Prague FIM SGP2 of Czech Republic – 19:00 CET
Fans with access to Discovery+ or the Eurosport App, available in selected countries, can enjoy full live coverage of all the FIM Speedway action this year.
Linear coverage is also available in selected countries – see below for more details of where to watch.
CZECH REP: Live on CT Sport
ACROSS EUROPE: Live on the Eurosport App
BRITAIN: Live on Discovery+
POLAND: Live on Eurosport Extra and Eurosport 1
SWEDEN: Live on Discovery+
DENMARK: Live on Discovery+
AUSTRALIA: Live on Fox Sports
USA: Live on beIN SPORTS
GERMANY: Live on the Eurosport App
CROATIA: Live on the Eurosport App
NORWAY: Live on Discovery+ and Eurosport
FINLAND: Live on Discovery+
ACROSS THE BALTICS: Live on Discovery+ and Go3
Discovery Sports Events