Polish star Patryk Dudek admits racing as a Speedway GP wild card seems to bring out his best form after he picked up third place in the Orlen Oil FIM Speedway GP of Poland – Warsaw last Saturday.
Dudek stormed through his last-chance qualifier to reach his first final at PGE Narodowy since 2019, before matching that year’s result with a third place behind Aussie duo Jack Holder and Brady Kurtz.
The Torun racer served as a wild card at the 2024 Speedway GP rounds in Wroclaw and Torun, scoring 12 championship points in each and reaching the semi-finals of both events.
Racing as a wild card comes without the pressure of being a full member of the Speedway GP line-up and chasing World Championship points. Dudek admits this seems to suit him.
He said: “When I finished third in Warsaw in 2019, it was a different feeling because I was racing all of the rounds in Speedway GP. This time, it was just one night, and I don’t know if I will race next time. There wasn’t big pressure for this meeting, so I had big fun.
“Last year I had wild cards two times, and my results were not bad. Maybe I must race all rounds as a wild card. It would be better because it isn’t the same pressure as normal.”
Dudek could appear later in the series after being named as second series substitute for 2025, meaning he could be called into action if a permanent member of the Speedway GP line-up is unavailable due to injury, illness or other reasons. Denmark’s Leon Madsen is first substitute and will therefore get first call ahead of Dudek.
The Bydgoszcz-born man was facing frustration in his quest to get back into Speedway GP after he missed out on SGP qualification at the 2024 FIM SGP Challenge in Pardubice last October.
He also couldn’t claim one of Poland’s three places in the Speedway GP qualifiers for the 2026 series at Poland’s Golden Helmet in Opole on April 21. These went to current Speedway GP star Dominik Kubera, double SGP2 champion Mateusz Cierniak and Kacper Woryna.
Dudek has, however, received news that he will line up in the Speedway European Championship following Danish champion Anders Thomsen’s withdrawal. This was after the Pole took sixth place in the 2024 SEC series. The top five qualify automatically.
The European champion earns a guaranteed spot in Speedway GP for 2026, and it’s a chance Dudek would love to take.
He said: “Last year, I fought for a GP place in the Challenge, but it was not my night in Pardubice. I missed out on a place in the qualifiers at the Polish Golden Helmet. But I now have a spot in the Speedway European Championship, and I can fight for that. Let’s see what happens.”