Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/126984
Ermolenko had a good first day, but fell off the pace on day two. Erik Gundersen. who took second overall. leads~veritualtitle winner Hans Nielsen; both riders are from Denmark. World Speedway Final Nielsen nabs World title, Ermolenko third By John Hipkiss AMSTERDAM, HOLLAND, SEPT 5-6 "Sudden Sam" Ermolenko, a 26-year-old rider from Maywood, California, watched helplessly as the 1987 Speedway World Championship slowly but surely slipped 8 from his grasp during the second day of competition in Amsterdam's Olympic Stadium. Ermolenko was tied for the lead with former Champion Erik Gundersen after the initial day of the first two-day final in speedway history, but on the second day he gradually slipped out of contention and had to be satisfied with taking third place, which equaled his performance in the Bradford final two years ago. The win went to 1986 Champion Hans Nielsen of Denmark, and Gundersen, also of Denmark, finished second after defeating Ermolenko in a tie-breaker. Nielsen finished with 27 points; Ermolenko and Gundersen had 24 points each. ErmoLenko did little to hide his disappointment following the second day of the final. "I thought I rode preuy well on the first day when things were RQing right for me, but on the second day the track was far too slick and I had the bad luck to be drawn in the outside lanes for three of my races," Ermolenko said. "There was just no grip there and it was almost impossible to have a fast getaway." Ermolenko was certainly in contention on opening day. He won four of his five races to collect 13 points, and retired a t the end of the session in a first-place tie with Gunderson. During the second day, however, it was Nielsen who took top honors, while Ermolenko and Gundersen ended the day tied in second place. Ermolenko collected twO race wins on day two, but Nielsen claimed five victories to wrap up the championship with a three-point margin after being a point down at the end of the first day. The luck of the draw was against the American again when Ermolenko and Gundersen faced each other in the runoff for second place. Gundersen was given the inside line and when he led into the first turn everyone knew there was no way Gundersen was going to let Ermolenko get by. Gundersen held on grimly to clinch the silver medal while Ermolenko had to be content with bronze. The American's disappointment was understandable. None of the riders were happy with the two-day formula except defending champion Nielsen. known as the "Great Dane," who took the tide from Gundersen in Poland last year. '1f it had been a straight 2O-heat final, I wouldn't have kept my title," said Nielsen. "I had some clutch