Motourage

Three-time FIM Speedway Grand Prix world champion Jason Crump has made a triumphant return to the podium, finishing second at the FIM British Speedway Grand Prix in Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium on Saturday. The Australian scored more heat wins than any other rider, winning four out of his six races and took second place in his semi-final race. While the Cardiff track once again proved to be a happy hunting ground for Crump, he was unable to find a way past fellow Australian Chris Holder in the final.

Photo Credit: Jarek Pabijan

Acknowledging he felt more comfortable on the bike tonight Crump said he was very happy with the way he raced.
“I’m starting to get a bit better and starting to race a bit harder and I’m back in the top three now which is pretty cool,” said Crump. “Cardiff is a special place for me, it is my home race and I have won here five times before. We have our summer break now so I will use this time to continue to get better and hopefully come back and close Jarek (Hampel) and Tomasz (Gollob) down at the top,” he stated.

Crump accumulated 17 championship points at tonight’s event and now sits third in the standings on 75 points.

The next event on the Speedway Grand Prix calendar is the FIM Scandinavian Grand Prix, which will be held on August 14 at Sweden’s Malilla Stadium.

FIM Speedway Grand Prix Championship top-10 standings after Round 6 of  11
1. Jaroslaw Hampel, 92pts
2. Tomasz Gollob, 90pts
3. Jason Crump, 75pts
4. Kenneth Bjerre, 66pts
5. Chris Holder, 60pts
6. Rune Holta, 56pts
7. Hans Andersen, 56pts
8. Nicki Pedersen, 51pts
9. Andreas Jonsson, 48pts
10. Freddie Lindgren, 43pts

Defending FIM Speedway World Championship title holder Jason Crump is chasing a top result at this weekend’s 10th anniversary of the British Speedway Grand Prix at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium, the event he has enjoyed the most success at in his 14 years as a professional rider. The event is the sixth round on the calendar and is set to be significant in deciding the 2010 championship.

Photo Credit: Jarek Pabijan

The Australian won the event in 2009 en route to his third world title, adding to four previous victories, the first of which was recorded in 1996. He also holds the GP track record at Millennium Stadium, posting a 55.80 effort in season 2008.

Crump’s form in local league races has wavered. Following the Torun GP he has had a solid showing for Elit Vetlanda against Indianerna, getting better starts and helping his team to 30-plus point wins on two occasions.

He contributed a valuable 10 points in Wroclaw’s most recent victory in the Polish league also.

This past weekend’s Swedish showing against Västervik was a tough affair for the Aussie, only scoring five points after slow starts to each heat and problems with his race bike.

Crump was eager to put the mid-week results behind him and concentrate on a better showing at Millennium Stadium.

“We’ve been working hard between the GPs and have had some varied results in the league races,” said Crump. “I’ve been feeling much better on the bike and am really working on being back close to my best for Cardiff. A few slow starts in this week’s league races cost me a good result, coupled with some bike problems. This isn’t too concerning, we’ve identified the issues to work on and I’m looking forward to another competitive outing at a GP where I’ve been successful in the past.”

The Speedway World Championship consists of 11 point-scoring rounds. Crump heads into the British GP fourth on the standings with 58 points, just a single point shy of Kenneth Bjerre in third. Tomasz Gollob heads the series on 78 points.