The line-up for the FIM SGP4 World Championship at Denmark’s Vojens Speedway Center this Saturday has been revealed.
Riders aged 11-13 from 11 different countries and four different continents are set to battle it out on the 190cc SGP4 bikes, designed by six-time FIM Speedway world champion Tony Rickardsson.
Australia’s Cooper Antone bids to make it third time lucky in his quest for gold after winning silver in the 2023 and 2024 SGP4 events in Malilla, Sweden. He’s joined in returning from the 2024 line-up by Denmark’s Tino Stjerngaard Olsen, who was eighth last year and flies the home flag alongside newcomers Simon Jul Vindum and Harry Moller.
Argentina’s Augusto Camoriano makes the long return trip to Scandinavia after finishing 10th in 2024. Germany will be represented by Johannes Ebel and Will Nico, while Sweden also has two entrants – Theo Trofast and Ludvig Lundgren. Great Britain’s Fraser Buckle, who trains at Oxford, makes his SGP4 debut, alongside USA shooting star Riley Rearick. They are joined by Slovakia’s Ondrej Trnik, Netherlands’ Ravi Nijenhuis, Norway’s Odd Leo Vigre, Latvia’s Valters Buss and one final entrant to be confirmed.
Australia's Cooper Antone bids to swap SGP4 silver for gold this season. PHOTO: Taylor Lanning
For the first time since the SGP4 class was launched in 2023, the competition has been granted full world-championship status by the FIM, meaning THREE world champions will be celebrated at Vojens’ epic Weekend of Champions.
FIM Speedway global ambassador Rickardsson created the SGP4 event in partnership with global promoter Warner Bros. Discovery Sports and the FIM. He cannot wait to see the competition’s first official world champion crowned on Saturday, with SGP4 action getting underway at 11:00 CEST.
He said: “It’s fantastic to see SGP4 enter this new era, with the winner being recognised as a world champion for the first time – with all the prestige that brings, including a trip to the FIM Awards to stand alongside champions from all of the FIM’s other championships from MotoGP to Speedway GP.
“I’m sure everyone will be going for gold on the track, but SGP4 is all about having fun and spending time with the other riders and their families from around the world. That’s the most important thing at this age.
“It’s great to be bringing SGP4 to Vojens – a club that holds special memories for me after I sealed a couple of world titles there. With three world champions being crowned this weekend, this is definitely an event not to miss. Make sure you get there in time for SGP4 at 11:00 on Saturday morning.”
2024 SGP4 champion Brady Landon from the USA. PHOTO: Taylor Lanning
The FIM Speedway Under-21 World Championship will be decided this weekend, when the Deluxe Homeart FIM SGP2 of Denmark – Vojens takes place on Friday evening (19:00 CEST), with Poland’s Wiktor Przyjemski (36 points) holding a four-point lead over Ukraine’s Nazar Parnitskyi (32) in the race for gold, with Denmark’s William Drejer (26) also chasing in third.
Following Saturday’s SGP4 racing on the Vojens mini track, attention switches to the main circuit as Poland’s Bartosz Zmarzlik and Australia’s Brady Kurtz battle it out for gold at 19:00 CEST. Five-time Speedway GP world champion Zmarzlik holds a three-point advantage as he bids to join Rickardsson and New Zealand great Ivan Mauger in the elite club of six-time world champions, as well as chasing an unprecedented fourth straight gold medal.
Meanwhile, Kurtz in second hopes to become the first rider to win the Speedway GP World Championship in their debut season since the series was launched in 1995. He is also one win away from becoming the first Speedway GP rider ever to win five rounds on the bounce, adding to his victories in Gorzow, Malilla, Riga and Wroclaw.
Tickets for Vojens’ Weekend of Champions are still available online HERE.
FIM SGP4 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP LINE-UP: Ondrej Trnik (Slovakia), Theo Trofast (Sweden), Johannes Ebel (Germany), Ludvig Lundgren (Sweden), Rider TBC, Ravi Nijenhuis (The Netherlands), Odd Leo Vigre (Norway), Tino Stjernegaard Olsen (Denmark), Cooper Antone (Australia), Simon Jul Vindum (Denmark), Riley Rearick (United States), Valters Buss (Latvia), Will Nico (Germany), Fraser Buckle (Great Britain), Harry Moller (Denmark), and Augusto Camoriano (Argentina).