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/128176
FIM World Championship Speedway Grand Prix Series Round 9: Vojens Speedway TONY RICKARDSSON EARNS HIS FIFTH WORLD SPEEDWAY CHAMPIONSHIP between 1984 and 1996, and that was when he failed to reach the 1992 final in Wroclaw, Poland. But Rickardsson has exploited the GP system to its maximum and, in putting himself out of reach in this year's championship with his third win of the season, has dashed the hopes of some thunder Down Under in the final Grand Prix of 2002 at the palatial Stadium Australia in Sydney later this month. The Aussie trio of Ryan SulHvan, Jason Crump and Leigh Adams were tucked in behind Rickardsson, going into the last Danish GP to be staged at Vojens before a move to the 41,640-capacity Parken stadium in Copenhagen in 2003, but come heat 25 and last Saturday night's climax, only Crump survived. Adams went out prior to the semifinals when trailing in last in heat 22, while Sullivan, bravely riding just a fortnight after breaking a collarbone and ribs in a spectacular crash at the European Grand Prix in Poland, finished third in the first semi-final. That meant Rickardsson, who had won heats nine, 13, 21 and 23, and STORY AND PHOTOS BY JOHN HIPKISS VOJENS,DENMARK,SEPT.28 ~ ony Rickardsson took another '1 inexorable step toward speedway immortality when he was crowned World Champion for the fifth time in nine years in Vojens, Denmark. The 32-year-old Swedish maestro has New Zealander Ivan Mauger's alltime record of six World-title wins in his sights after clinching victory in this year's series with one round - the first Grand Prix ever to be held in AustraUa on Saturday October 26 still to be run. In adding a fifth crown to his tally, Rickardsson has pulled clear of fourtime winners Hans Nielsen and Barry Briggs to move level with his countryman ave Fundin. It could be said that those legends from the past might have won more gold medals had the Grand Prix been in operation when they were at their peak, in particular Danish icon Nielsen, who was also runner-up on no fewer than six occasions and only finished out of the top three in the world once during a 13-year period 26 OCTOBER 1 6, 2002' cue • • n _., s finished third in heat 19. only had to finish ahead of Crump to be sure of the crown, and though he gated to the front, that became a formality when Crump reared violently on the fourth turn on lap one to lose control of his machine. Crump had been lucky to reach the final, having jumped the start in his semi-final only to benefit from Polish referee Marek Wojaczek calling for the race to be restarted with all four riders as the Australian hopeful trailed from the tapes. Rickardsson, who won his first title at Vojens in 1994 in the last one-off final, said that trying to equal Ivan Mauger's record is not something he thinks about, but it's an easy wager that Rickardsson will be going all out to win again next year. "It hasn't quite sunk in that I have won it for a fifth time yet, and though I can now relax in Australia, I won't be treating it as a holiday," Rickardsson said. Billy Hamill followed his recent American-title win by producing his best performance of the year to finish third on the rostum, behind Rickards- son and Tomasz Gollob, and like Californian compatriot and fellow former World Champion Greg Hancock, he is now guaranteed to finish in the top 10 and requalify for the 2003 series. Hamill battled through from heat one to heat 25, two wins and three second places eaming him a place in the final for the first time this season. "It was a pretty good night for me, and the start of a pretty good few days," said Hamill, who scored 15 points for his Polish club, Zielona Gora, on Sunday and then helped Coventry, his English club, to a vital Craven Shield win at Wolverhampton on Monday night. "It was nice to final· Iy reach a final again and get onto the rostrum. I gambled a little off gate three in the final, and it never quite worked for me. The track was slick, but like most of the guys, I was happy to be riding on a proper speedway track that allowed you to go out and race." With Hamill now sure to finish in the top 10, that means the pressure is off for Australia. "I never put too much emphasis on not qualifying again," he said, "but it