Danish skipper Michael Jepsen Jensen insists team spirit can give his side extra power as they prepare for the BOLL FIM Speedway World Cup Final – Warsaw at PGE Narodowy on Saturday.
The Danes won 11.lv FIM SWC Semi-Final 2 – Riga on August 7 to make it to the Polish capital, where they take on reigning champions Poland, 2025 SON champions Australia and Semi-Final 1 winners Great Britain.
Danish boss Nicki Pedersen names an unchanged side from the Riga event and MJJ teams up with Speedway GP rival Leon Madsen, triple European champion Mikkel Michelsen, triple Danish champion Anders Thomsen and 2026 Danish Championship runner-up Frederik Jakobsen.
There’s a history of legendary feuds in Danish speedway, from Hans Nielsen and Erik Gundersen in the 1980s to Pedersen and Hans Andersen in the 2000s. But Jepsen Jensen knows Saturday is the time for his side to fire as one if they are to win their first world team title since 2014.
He said: “I know the team spirit is important at these things. But that isn’t just for Denmark – it’s all the teams who need to put things to the side. Everybody needs to work together.
“Maybe we don’t have to do it on the track because we are still riding individually, but team spirit can add a lot of power to any team, workplace or wherever. If there is a negative spirit, it can very quickly kill the mojo. In that way, it is very important for all of us.”
MJJ can’t wait to line up in Warsaw for the first time since 2015. He said: “It will be a mega event. It will be so cool to be there. It’s going to be special. I think I only raced in Warsaw in 2015 in the GPs. It’s going to be crazy, and especially as an SWC event.”
Asked to rate Denmark’s victory hopes, MJJ replied: “I think we have a strong line-up. We had a tough beginning in Latvia, but we still managed to do what we were supposed to do in many ways. We got to the Final, and I believe anything can happen when we get there. I think we can do it as much as the other teams can. If everybody puts it together, then I believe it’s time for us to be on top.”
While an open battle for gold is expected at PGE Narodowy, Jepsen Jensen insists the pressure isn’t on his team. He said: “I think the pressure must be on Poland. I think we have a really strong line-up, but I don’t think the pressure is on us.”