Great Britain’s new Speedway GP world champion Robert Lambert was elated to end his DEWALT FIM Speedway GP of Poland – Torun jinx as he completed an astonishing fightback to win the sport’s biggest prize.
Words by FIM Speedway – Images courtesy of Taylor Lanning
Despite being 23 points adrift of top spot after four rounds, three wins and three second places in the final six saw the Norfolk-born racer surge to victory on 162 championship points, denying Poland’s six-time world champion Bartosz Zmarzlik a record-breaking, history-making seventh gold medal – and a fifth SGP world title on the bounce.
Zmarzlik, who was forced to settle for silver on 160, finished in the Speedway GP top two for a ninth straight year, while Australia’s Brady Kurtz bagged bronze on 157 – his second World Championship medal in as many SGP seasons.
Incredibly, all three riders went into the final able to win the gold medal in the greatest-ever finish to a Speedway GP world title race, which was decided by the final four laps of the season.
Lambert lives in Torun and captained the Polish giants to their first-ever PGE Ekstraliga title since 2008 last year. Despite racing for them since 2021, he had never previously scored more than 11 championship points in an FIM Torun Speedway GP event.
He laid that curse to rest at the best possible time, and Lambert was elated to complete his incredible surge to Speedway GP World Championship gold.
He said: “It was unbelievable to win it in my home stadium. I’ve had some bad GPs here in Torun and a little bit of bad luck. It was tough coming here, with everyone saying that my GPs here have been terrible. But I’m absolutely on fire in the league. At least I was able to be consistent like I am in the league.
“Torun is my home club, and also the place where I live. To be able to win it here is something super special. When it soaks in, it’s going to be an amazing feeling.
“Winning the world title is completely unexpected. So many things go into it behind the scenes and have helped me get to this point. I’m sure Bartek has felt that all the times he has been world champion, and massive respect to him.
“It’s still sinking in, and it probably won’t sink in for a couple of days. I’m super happy. I never expected or planned to do what happened in the second half of the season. It kind of happened naturally and when it happens like that, it’s meant to be. It took hard work to get here, but when things are rolling, they’re rolling.”
Lambert started the day as Speedway GP World Championship leader on 142 points, after closing a 10-point gap going into the Deluxe Homeart FIM Speedway GP of Denmark – Vojens on September 12 to take a one-point lead at the top.
The 28-year-old was overtaken by Zmarzlik ahead of the main event in Torun after the Pole finished second in the afternoon sprint race, scoring three points to claim a two-point advantage on 144.
Zmarzlik had never previously failed to win the world title when he started the final round leading the standings, so Lambert is pleased he didn’t panic after being dumped out of Qualifying by fellow GB star Dan Bewley in Q1.
He said: “It was only a couple of points that I was down. Anything can happen in speedway. Look at Vojens – it was a complete turnaround to what it was before the meeting. I am a big believer in just doing my races and seeing how it plays out. It played out great.
“Even though I didn’t get into the sprint race, I was still second place in Q1 in terms of time. Dan and I were the top two. If I wasn’t up against Dan, I probably would have got through, scored a few more points and maybe I wouldn’t have made it so complicated for the final.
“I’m super happy with how I kept my composure and was able to push through, and I’m super proud of myself that I kept hold of my emotions and took it race by race. Even when we had the top three guys in the world in the final, and it all came down to that, I was able to pull it off.”
Lambert still has an exciting finish to 2026 to look forward to as wife Julia is expecting the couple’s first child, a daughter, in November. While fatherhood can affect riders in varying ways, Lambert admits the prospect of becoming a dad gave him extra horsepower on the track.
He said: “I knew about that back in March – before the season even started. That’s something we have been getting excited about. That has given me a different outlook on things. I had something to look forward to and focus on. Someone said before that becoming a father took 0.5 seconds off for Formula 1 drivers, but it seemed to give me 0.5 seconds. We’ll see how it goes, but I am super grateful to be in this position.”
Runner-up Zmarzlik was content to continue his run of nine straight seasons in the world’s top two. The 31-year-old said: “Of course I was fighting for the gold medal, but I am super happy about the silver medal. That’s the 10th medal in all for me now, which is a really nice feeling.
“I would like to say a big congrats to Robert and Brady. I think we have put on a really good show and a really good fight on the track all season. That’s nice for us. I am happy because I am still young, but for the last 10 years, I have been at the top, so I am super happy about this.
“Everyone wants to do a good job and win the gold medal. Robert has been consistent all season and been at the top. I know how hard it is. I understand the boys because I have been in this situation six times.
“I had another chance to win, but this season, I was only ready for the silver medal. I think a lot of people would want to have the silver medal, and I am really happy about this one.”
Third-placed Kurtz was delighted to show his outstanding Speedway GP debut season in 2025, which saw him win silver, was no fluke.
He said: “Obviously I am happy with the season as a whole. The most important thing for me was to try and back up last year – not just have one good season and then go missing.
“I’m really happy to say I have two medals in two years and congratulations to Robert. He definitely deserved the gold. He did come on at the end of the year, and I didn’t really have any answers for him.
“I have a little bit of hard work to do in the winter to try and make some improvements, come back again next year, and then we’ll go at it again. My team was fantastic all year. They did everything they possibly could to give me the best chance. I just under-performed a few times in the final and that’s all that made a difference really.”
Kurtz is already excited for 2027 after next year’s Speedway GP calendar was revealed on Saturday afternoon, with the series returning to Australia for the first time in 10 years.
The new world No.3 is relishing the chance to go for gold in his homeland at the FIM Speedway GP of Australia – Adelaide at Gillman Speedway on October 29 and 30, 2027. He said: “I’m super happy. I think it’s overdue. We have had so many good riders in the GPs for so many years now. To not have our own round has been a shame.
“I think it will be cool. Gillman is such a good track, and I think it will be an unreal GP there. I’m looking forward to it.
“Obviously it’s very far away at this moment, but hopefully by the end of next year, I can be up there again, and it would be a very special thing to fight for the world title in my home country.”
For final Speedway GP World Championship standings, CLICK HERE.
For full DEWALT FIM Speedway GP of Poland – Torun results, CLICK HERE.
