BETTER LUCK FOR BARTEK

Polish racer Bartosz Zmarzlik was delighted to see fortune smile on him in Hallstavik as he finished third in the Norrbil Swedish SGP on Saturday.

The world No.5 joined winner Maciej Janowski and runner-up Freddie Lindgren on the rostrum at the HZ Bygg Arena – a result which saw him occupy the eighth and final automatic qualification place for 2019 ahead of world champion Jason Doyle.

Zmarzlik enjoyed a solid start to 2018, recording 23 points in the opening three SGP rounds. But he was happy to step things up with 13 in Hallstavik and his first final appearance of the year.

He said: “I’m very happy because in the early rounds of the GP this season, I haven’t had luck. But it all came in Hallstavik. Maybe I wasn’t in the top two, but this is a good result and I am very happy because I was third.

“It was good fun on the track. I had a very good feeling on Saturday and thank you to my team. They did some very good work.

“The track was very well prepared and very good for speedway. On every lap and every corner, there were many lines for good speed. I like this track.”

Zmarzlik is now just 10 points off third place and firmly in the hunt for a World Championship medal. But the Gorzow and Vetlanda man isn’t looking too far ahead as the series approaches its halfway mark at the Adrian Flux British SGP in Cardiff on July 21.

He said: “I’m just looking for points from every round, and I’m only looking at the next round in Cardiff. We’ll see how many points I score there. Keep your fingers crossed for me.”