Sam Masters, the 2017 Australian Speedway Senior Solo Champion will once again be competing in the 2017 QBE Insurance Australian FIM Speedway Grand Prix (28 October) at Etihad Stadium in Melbourne. This will mark the third time Masters will appear in a coveted GP, and he’s more determined than ever to impress on the world stage.
Hailing from Newcastle, NSW, Masters won his first Australian Championship at his home track the Loxford Park Speedway in Kurri Kurri. Now Masters is set to compete in front of his Aussie fans at Etihad Stadium. He will join Australian Speedway riders Jason Doyle, Chris Holder, Justin Sedgmen and Davey Watt.
Masters sharing; “I am really looking forward to the racing this weekend. I cannot wait to get out there on track and crack the throttle wide open!
“We returned from Edinburgh, Scotland on Sunday night, the bike just got in a couple of days ago and we’ve just been getting it all ready and tuning the bikes before I fly down to Melbourne tomorrow.
“I have been away in the United Kingdom since March, after contesting the Aussie titles. I have had a really good season over there and hope to continue that form heading into 2018.
“I got second with my Wolverhampton team and had personal success in Sweden and Poland, but unfortunately my team did not do so well and I did alright at Edinburgh too. All in all, it’s been a good season except for a broken collar bone mid-season.
“To get the call up for the Melbourne GP for the third time in a row is awesome and I know what to expect. It’s always a bit of a shift in mentality racing individually in GP, rather than what I am used to in the UK for League events, where you are part of a team. However, we all grow up in the sport racing individual events, so when the flag drops it’s on!
“I’ve raced against all these guys before, but you have to remember, this is also the worlds’ best riders and anything can and will happen in Speedway! You can never pick your closest rival because they all are so good.
“It’s great for Australia to have five extremely talented riders and two reserves ready to take on the world! It’s always great to race on home soil and the crowds at Etihad Stadium are always very impressive. I am really looking forward to being there when Doyley (Jason Doyle) hopefully wraps up the championship.
“I will stay in Australia, until the Aussie titles are over and then plan to head back to the UK. I have been traveling back and forth like that since 2007. I started riding bikes when I was five years old and quickly started racing dirt track. But due to my whole family being involved in Speedway over the years, it was a no brainer!
“Can’t wait to see all the Aussie fans this Saturday on October 28, if you’re thinking about getting down to Etihad Stadium this weekend, make sure you do, you won’t regret it!” Finished Masters.
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WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS:
Jason Doyle 142
Patryk Dudek 128
Tai Woffinden 115
Maciej Janowski 113
Emil Sayfutdinov 109
Bartosz Zmarzlik 108
Fredrik Lindgren 107
Matej Zagar 97
Martin Vaculik 90
Chris Holder 82
Piotr Pawlicki 79
Antonio Lindback 73
Peter Kildemand 54
Greg Hancock 45
Niels-Kristian Iversen 44
Vaclav Milik 31
Martin Smolinski 19
Max Fricke 11
Pawel Przedpelski 10
Nicki Pedersen 8
Maksims Bogdanovs 8
Michael Jepsen 8
Kenneth Bjerre 7
Krzysztof Kasprzak 6
Kai Huckenbeck 4
Jacob Thorssell 4
Przemyslaw Pawlicki 3
Kim Nilsson 2
Craig Cook 2
Linus Sundstrom 2
Josh Bates 2
Nick Škorja 1
Picture courtesy of Judy Mackay
Sam Masters Australian Speedway Titles podium 2017