The 2007 Speedway World Championship moves to Poland for round two this Saturday night, at a venue where Australian Jason Crump recently set a new race record.
Crump laid down the fresh benchmark at Wroclaw (pronounced "Rotslav") on May 3 during a Polish league match, which marked a swashbuckling return to form for the 31-year-old dual world champion.
Crump now admits that he was caught short in finishing fourth at the opening round of the world title in Italy on April 28, and he is determined to make amends at the 387-metre long Wroclaw, which is his home base in Poland.
"I'm not going to Poland to make up the numbers -- I'm going there to win," said Crump. "We've sorted the problems we had in Italy. Occasionally you get one of those nights where things don't go to plan no matter how well prepared you are and, ironically, a similar thing happened at the first grand prix last year."
Crump's 13th GP victory came at Wroclaw in 2006 (he now has 16), which was the start of a magnificent three-race winning streak that set the foundation for a second world title.
Wroclaw will be the first of two GPs to be held in Poland this year, where speedway has a passionate and loyal supporter base.
"I always look forward to racing in Poland," said Crump. "Speedway is its No. 1 sport and has a massive following. The stadium will be packed to capacity and the atmosphere generated by the Polish people is fantastic. They are very vocal and they really know how to enjoy themselves. It's going to be a good night."
After the opening round, Crump is currently equal fourth in the standings alongside countryman
Leigh Adams. Both are on 12pts, behind Dane
Nicki Pedersen (24pts), American
Greg Hancock (19pts) and Poland's
Wieslaw Jagus (14pts).
Pedersen, the 2003 world champion, waltzed through the Italian opener, winning all his five heats before storming through the semi-final and final.
Pedersen will again be hard to topple if that merciless form continues, while Adams' immediate goal will be to make it all the way to the final for the first time since round seven last year.
The 36-year-old wasn't at full health in round one after a huge crash the week before in England, but he's now ironed out most of the remaining sore spots.
"I've had extensive phsyio on my upper body and my injuries are almost 100 per cent now," said Adams, who still made the semis at Lonigo despite his interrupted preparation. "I like the Wroclaw track and engine power is important there. I feel I have the bikes to get the job done there.
"Wroclaw is Crump's home track so we know he's going to be tough to beat there - but I'm not going in with a negative attitude; I'm ready for it."
In addition to Crump, three other Wroclaw winners will be in action under lights this Saturday night: Hancock (1997), Poland's Tomasz Gollob (1999) and Dane Bjarne Pedersen (2004).
Gollob always lifts in front of a partisan crowd - seven of his 10 GP wins have come on Polish soil - while the venerable Hancock continues to be a model of consistency in his 13th year of world speedway competition.
Meanwhile, the little-known Jagus is shooting for yet another spot in the final at Wroclaw, while top guns
Hans Andersen,
Andreas Jonsson,
Matej Zagar and
Jaroslaw Hampel all have to show some grit after listless openings in Italy.
All the action from Poland can be followed at
www.speedwayworld.tv.
2007 WORLD SPEEDWAY STANDINGS (after round one of 11):
1 Nicki Pedersen, Denmark 24pts
2 Greg Hancock, America 19
3 Wieslaw Jagus, Poland 14
4= Jason Crump, Australia 12
4= Leigh Adams, Australia 12
6 Tomasz Gollob, Poland 10
7 Hans Andersen, Denmark 9
8 Jaroslaw Hampel, Poland 8
9= Andreas Jonsson, Sweden 7
9= Chris Harris, Great Britain 7
Main Photo: Jason Crump
