Russia wins Speedway of Nations

Russia has won its first senior world title of any kind on the shale – individual or team – with its victory in the inaugural Speedway of Nations (SON), which concluded in Wroclaw, Poland on Sunday, June 10.

Emil Sayfutdinov and partner Artem Laguta saw off Great Britain pair Tai Woffinden and Robert Lambert in the grand final, while Australia (Jason Doyle and Max Fricke) finished the event in fifth overall.

Despite GB topping the score chart over two days to finish on 46pts, Russia – which was just one short – saw off Poland in the final qualifier to take its place alongside the Lions in the battle for gold.

And despite Woffinden winning the race, Laguta and Sayfutdinov filled the minor places needed to make history.

Sayfutdinov said: “This is a great feeling – unbelievable. We did it – we made history for Russia and we have to thank our Russian fans and also our Polish fans who support us. We have Polish sponsors who help us too. We have made history and it is an amazing feeling.

“This meeting was so tough over two days for me. Artem scored good points, even today he made some mistakes with the setup, but he was still good.

“For me, Saturday was everything I worked for. After Friday, we needed to change the bike setups. I have to say thank you to my team who worked really hard and helped me. They’re a good team. I am so, so happy.”

Australia put in a strong performance on day two in fourth position, with Doyle scoring 16pts – Woffinden the only rider to best him on 17pts.

Poland finished the SON in third position on 36pts, followed by Denmark (35), Australia (35), Sweden (32) and Germany (23).

With the SON complete, the focus switches back to the Speedway Grand Prix series, which resumes with the Danish SGP in Horsens on Saturday, June 30.

Speedway of Nations final standings
1 Russia 45+1st in Grand Final, 2 Great Britain 46+2nd in Grand Final, 3 Poland 36, 4 Denmark 35, 5 Australia 35, 6 Sweden 32, 7 Germany 23.