Please find below the updated 2024 calendar.

Words FIM Communications – Feature Image by Jesper Veldhuizen

The post FIM Long Track World Championship 2024 calendar update appeared first on Speedway Hub UK.

Report and Feature Image by FIM Long Track

While Hummel was streaking to victory – his first at this level in six years despite winning the title after an abbreviated 2021 series – the championship fight between Chris ‘Bomber’ Harris and Germany’s Martin Smolinski remained as fierce as ever with Smolinski, champion in 2018, taking second ahead of his British rival.

The result cuts Harris’ championship advantage to just a single point with only the sixth Final – scheduled for Mühldorf in Germany on Sunday 17 September – remaining to decide the eventual destination of the title.

On a night disrupted by a power failure caused by a thunderstorm followed then by heavy rain after the first two Heats, the meeting was only rescued by heroics from the track team whose expert efforts ensured the action continued, although the programme was not completed until the early hours of Sunday morning.

It has not been a smooth season so far for Hummel, but the twenty-four-year-old was in fine form and dominated in the early stages to lead Britain’s Zach Wajtknecht on maximum points after the opening three blocks of racing.

With two wins and a second-placed finish, Smolinski was also in contention ahead of Denmark’s Kenneth Kruse Hansen who won last time out in Scheessel, but Harris was back in seventh and without a Heat victory.

Tensions were running high in the fourth block of racing and Harris dug deep to win his penultimate Heat race from Smolinski and then Hummel claimed a second behind the Czech Republic’s Josef Franc before Hansen followed Dutch racer Dave Meijerink across the line.

With the top three scorers transferring directly to the Grand Final and getting the all-important first gate picks, it was Hummel, Smolinski and Hansen who booked automatic places in the main event with victories in their fifth Heat races which left Wajtknecht, Harris, Meijerink, Franc and Jacob Bukhave from Denmark to fight it out in the Last Chance Heat for the remaining two places behind the tapes.

A mechanical problem immediately sidelined Wajtknecht and Harris claimed a vital victory from Meijerink, but the pair were forced to choose inside starting positions for the Grand Final as Hummel, Smolinski and Hansen lined up in the favoured outside gates.

Firing off the line from gate five, Hummel swept across his rivals into a lead he refused to surrender with Smolinski slotting into second and Harris lying an initial fourth behind Meijerink. If the positions remained unchanged then Smolinski would take the series lead, but Harris – after resisting pressure from Hansen – made a brave pass around the outside of Meijerink at the end of lap three to retain his position at the top of the standings.

All eyes will now be on Mühldorf where the 2023 FIM Long Track World Championship looks destined to come to a thrilling climax as Harris and Smolinski go head-to-head for the sport’s biggest prize.

The action from Mühldorf is available as a Pay-Per-View broadcast via a livestream package on the Tapes Up TV channel.

Results

Standings

The post Victory for Hummel as Harris finishes third in Morizès! 2023 FIM Long Track World Championship Round 5 – Report, Results and Standings appeared first on Speedway Hub UK.

Report and Images courtesy of FIM Longtrack

The Dane dominated this season’s fourth Final, but with two still to go in Morizes in France and Mühldorf in Germany next month the series is threatening to become a two-man contest between Britain’s Chris ‘Bomber’ Harris and Germany’s Martin Smolinski who picked up solid points in second and third as Zach Wajtknecht dropped off the pace.

Hansen, Harris and German wild card rider Erik Riss got off to winning starts in the first block of three Heats and Hansen moved into a solo lead after beating Harris in their second Heat.

Champion in 2021, Romano Hummel has not really threatened this year, but the Dutchman brought himself into early contention with just his third Heat race win of the campaign in the second block at the expense of Smolinski – who had to settle for the runner-up position in a repeat of his opening Heat result – and Riss also dropped a point with second behind 2020 World Champion and home hero Lukas Fienhage.

As Hansen advanced towards a place in the Grand Final with his third straight win of the afternoon, Harris ensured he stayed in touch with victory ahead of Smolinski in their third Heat to keep the deficit to one point and he was joined in joint second by Riss who also won.

The fourth block saw further wins for Hansen, Harris and Riss while Smolinski added another three points to his total with his fourth second-placed finish of the afternoon and Germany’s Stephan Katt, who was injured at Scheessel in 2022, strengthened his case for a place in the Last Chance Heat with a second of his own.

Following his strong start to the meeting, Hummel’s challenge faded as he retired with an apparent mechanical problem after failing to score in his third Heat while British racer Wajtknecht – who was just three points behind leader Harris at the start of the day – slipped out of contention after ending his fourth Heat without adding to his total.

Hansen continued to exert complete control with his fifth win from five starts in the last block and he was joined as an automatic qualifier for the Grand Final by Riss and Harris who finished second and third behind Fienhage in their fifth Heat.

After suffering a mechanical failure in his fourth Heat and pushing his machine for almost a full lap of the track to score a single point, Denmark’s Jacob Bukhave booked his place in the Last Chance Heat with victory in his final Heat race to join Smolinski, Katt, Fienhage and Hummel behind the tapes.

With the first two to go through to the Grand Final, Katt led from the start before Smolinski made a move at the end of lap two, but the race was halted prematurely when Fienhage crashed while closing in on Katt and Bukhave hit his fallen bike and also went down.

The positions when the red lights went on were upheld so Smolinski and Katt joined Hansen, Riss and Harris in the Grand Final and it was the Dane who chose a wide starting gate before swooping into the lead and putting the seal on a perfect day.

Harris held second all the way to the flag to extend his championship advantage to three points from Smolinski who snatched third from Riss with Katt coming home fifth.

By failing to make the Grand Final for the first time in eight consecutive attempts, Wajtknecht’s dream of a debut FIM Long Track World Championship title suffered a serious blow and while he still sits third he is now eighteen points off the leader’s pace.

The riders now get a well-earned weekend off before the fifth and penultimate Final of the year is staged at Morizes on 2 September.

The full series is available as a Pay-Per-View broadcast via a livestream package on the Tapes Up TV channel.

Results

Standings

The post Bomber Harris second in Scheessel! 2023 FIM Long Track World Championship Round 4 – Race Report and Results appeared first on Speedway Hub UK.

Report and Feature Image by World Longtrack

The forty-year-old British rider – who claimed a career-first Grand Final victory last time out at Ostrów in Poland – made it back-to-back wins and in doing so moved into a slender one-point lead ahead of Germany’s Martin Smolinski as the series roared past the halfway mark.

Heading into Marmande there was a three-way tie for the championship lead between 2018 World Champion Smolinski, Britain’s Zach Wajtknecht and Josef Franc from the Czech Republic with Harris one point adrift in fourth, but with three Finals still to be held there has been a dramatic reshuffle at the top of the leaderboard.

Harris, who also came out on top in last month’s FIM Long Track World Championship Challenge, was the man carrying the most momentum into Marmande and with his confidence soaring he was first to the line in the Grand Final following his three wins and two second-placed finishes in his Heat races.

Smolinski – who won three of his Heats – and Wajtknecht, who also claimed three Heat wins including one over Harris, were automatic qualifiers for the Grand Final, but Franc’s title hopes sustained a serious blow when he failed to make it as far as the Last Chance Heat.

The line-up for the Grand Final was completed by Dutch wild card Dave Meijerink who did not make an impact on his series debut in Poland, but finished second in the Last Chance Heat behind Germany’s 2020 World Champion Lukas Fienhage as the pair progressed to the main race of the night.

With gate pick proving to be crucial and an outside line into the first turn favourable, Harris went bar-to-bar with Smolinski – who he narrowly defeated in Ostrów – on the opening two laps with the German holding the initial advantage.

Harris tried a brave early move and attempted to cut inside his rival in turn two, but was fought off before he struck back to take the lead and then soaked up pressure for the remaining two laps.

Wajtknecht held on to take the final step of the podium ahead of Meijerink and Fienhage which has dropped him to third in the standings, just three points behind his compatriot, as Franc – winner of the opening round at Herxheim in Germany in May – slipped to a distant fourth.

It was another frustrating night for Dutch racer Romano Hummel. The 2021 World Champion was full of confidence at the start of the night and won his first Heat, but a false start in his second resulted in no points which pushed him down the order and although he made it to the Last Chance Heat he did not get a favourable gate pick and crossed the line fifth.

The focus now shifts to Scheessel in Germany on 20 August for the fourth Final of the 2023 FIM Long Track World Championship.

The full series is available as a Pay-Per-View broadcast via a livestream package on the Tapes Up TV channel.

Results

Standings

The post Harris takes his second FIM Long Track World Championship win to snatch series lead in Marmande – Report, Results an Standings appeared first on Speedway Hub UK.

The forty-year-old British rider came out on top in the second Final of this year’s full FIM Long Track World Championship at Ostrów in Poland one week ago and he was in charge again, putting in a series of commanding performances to seize the overall win on an action-packed night of racing.

The purpose of the Challenge event was to determine the five riders who will get a permanent place behind the tapes in the 2024 FIM Long Track World Championship alongside this year’s top-six finishers and three wild cards chosen by the FIM.

Although currently fourth in the main 2023 series and just one point behind a three-way tie for the lead after the opening two Finals, Harris was in France to try to ensure he would be guaranteed a start next season and he got his night off to a flying start with a last-lap, last-corner pass for the win in his opening Heat.

Backing this up with two further victories and a pair of second-placed finishes, he then dominated his Semi Final after taking the lead through the first turn before winning a restarted Grand Final to put the seal on a dominant performance.

Dave Meijerink from the Netherlands matched Harris with a pair of wins in his first two Heats and added a third victory before booking his place in the Grand Final with second in his Semi Final and he then signed off with another strong second.

Britain’s Andrew Appleton ended the night on the podium, but he was forced to dig deep after winning his opening heat – restarted after France’s Gaétan Stella crashed – only to be disqualified for breaking track limits. The forty-one-year-old then put together three Heat victories, won his Semi Final and took the chequered flag in third in the Grand Final.

With five riders out of the twenty-two-strong field coming from the host nation, French hopes were high at the start of the night and Jordan Dubernard ensured that the large crowd went home happy, taking two Heat wins and second in his Semi Final before ending the night with a fighting fourth in the Grand Final.

The last rider to make the cut for next year was Germany’s Michael Härtel who was forced to fight back after a mechanical problem put him out of his opening Heat while leading. He then strung together four wins to progress to the Semi Finals where he followed Harris home, but crashed heavily at the start of the Grand Final and was unable to continue.

With the Challenge event consigned to the history books for another year, focus now shifts to the third Final of the 2023 FIM Long Track World Championship which will be held at Marmande in France on Thursday 13 July.

The full series is available as a Pay-Per-View broadcast via a livestream package on the Tapes Up TV channel.

Results – (Results Image courtesy of Volker Langer)

The post Harris in charge of FIM Long Track World Championship Challenge – Report & Results appeared first on Speedway Hub UK.

Race Report and Feature Image courtesy of FIM Longtrack

The British rider did it the hard way after a mechanical problem in his fifth and final Heat forced him to progress to the evening’s main race via the Last Chance Heat, but when the tape went up in the Grand Final he barely put a wheel wrong.

The result elevates him to fourth in the points table with four Finals still to run, but he is now just one point behind a three-way tie for the lead between Josef Franc, Martin Smolinski and Zach Wajtknecht.

Smolinski was in dominant form in the Municipal Stadium and headed into the Grand Final with a perfect five wins from his five Heats and when the German started in front it looked to be a case of business as usual for the 2018 World Champion, but Harris had other ideas.

Slotting into an initial second, the forty-year-old then dived up the inside of his rival to take the lead and then soaked up non-stop pressure to beat Smolinski to the chequered flag by no more than a bike length and in doing so claim a career-first Grand Final win at his tenth attempt.

Next across the line were Denmark’s Kenneth Kruse Hansen and Hynek Stichauer from the Czech Republic with both riders bouncing back from disappointing performances at the opening Final of the championship at Herxheim last month.

Britain’s Zach Wajtknecht, who also earned his place in the Grand Final via the Last Chance Heat, ended the evening in fifth.

Czech charger Franc, who led heading into Ostrów after taking victory in Herxheim, was eliminated in the Last Chance Heat, but the eleven points he scored for sixth overall were good enough to keep him firmly in contention.

It was a frustrating evening for 2021 champion Romano Hummel from the Netherlands who started strongly with a win and a second in his opening Heats before adding just one more point to his total in his remaining three Heats.

Germany’s Lukas Fienhage – the 2020 World Champion – was lying third at the start of the event, but the twenty-three-year-old also struggled and ended the evening in ninth to drop to fifth behind Harris in the championship chase.

The evening also marked an emotional farewell for Polish wild card rider Stanislaw Burza who announced his retirement from the sport, but ‘Stan Storm’ signed off in style after making it through to the Last Chance Heat with some forceful riding.

The fastest Long Track riders on the planet now have just over three-and-a-half weeks to regroup before the third of this season’s six Finals at Marmande in France on Thursday 13 July.

The full series is available as a Pay-Per-View broadcast via a livestream package on the Tapes Up TV channel.

For more details click here.

The post Harris claims dramatic win at second FIM Long Track World Championship Final – Race Report appeared first on Speedway Hub UK.

Report and Images by FIM Longtrack

The forty-four-year-old, a five-time National Champion, did not drop below second position all day and won three out of his five Heat races before powering his way to the top step of the podium when it mattered most in an adrenalin-fuelled Final that was watched by fourteen thousand noisy fans.

While Franc was clearly in great form and in contention all afternoon, it was not until the final Heat that he got ahead before his heroic performance in the Final put the result out of reach of his rivals.

“I still do not believe it,” said Franc. “It is a great beginning to the restart of my career since getting injured last year. I’m very happy for me and for everyone who helps me out. It was good fair racing and the best guy won – luckily that was me.

“I am very surprised there were no mistakes from myself, the bike was brilliant and everything was perfect. You do not always win all the races from the tape, but I was fighting.”

Great Britain’s Zach Wajtknecht, who won the last two Finals of 2022, looked to have started where he left off last season and along with Martin Smolinski from Germany and France’s Gaétan Stella shared the lead after the opening three Heats before three successive second-placed finishes followed by a disqualification dropped him to third.

However, the twenty-five-year-old stuck back with a powerful performance in the Final behind Franc to claim the second step of the podium.

Josef Franc at FIM Long Track World Championship – Herxheim (Germany) @ Jesper Veldhuizen
Home hero Lukas Fienhage, the 2020 World Champion, was one position away from an automatic place in the final heading into his fifth Heat, but was forced to retire which sent him to the Last Chance Heat which he won and he then clinched third in the Final.

Despite his opening win, Stella was inconsistent and was also forced to advance to the Final via the Last Chance Heat and he narrowly missed the podium in fourth.

Smolinski was the early pacesetter and racing on home ground he completed his first four Heats unbeaten, but trailed home last in his fifth Heat. This dropped him to second behind Franz heading into the Final where the 2018 World Champion ended his afternoon in fifth after his spark plug failed.

Best of the rest was 2021 World Champion Romano Hummel from the Netherlands who missed out on a place in the five-rider Final after finishing third in the Last Chance Heat.

The focus now switches to Ostrów in Poland on 17 June for the second of this season’s six Finals.

The full series is available as a Pay-Per-View broadcast via a livestream package on the Tapes Up TV channel.

Results

The post Franc strikes first as Wajtknecht is second in 2023 FIM Long Track World Championship Opener – Race Report & Results appeared first on Speedway Hub UK.