Latvian ace Andzejs Lebedevs hopes practice makes perfect as he lines up on his Polish home track for the Events.com FIM Speedway GP of Poland – Gorzow on Saturday.
The European champion has never raced a Speedway GP event in Gorzow after missing the 2024 edition due to injury. He also served as an SGP series substitute for 2022 and 2023 but was only called up for the rounds after Gorzow in both seasons.
Fortunately for Lebedevs, he is no stranger to the Edward Jancarz Stadium after joining Stal Gorzow for the 2025 PGE Ekstraliga season. He hopes to make his track knowledge count as he takes on the best riders in the world in front of a packed house.
Lebedevs said: “This will be my first GP in Gorzow, but the advantage is I have been able to practice a little bit more on this track this year. I’ve had a few league meetings on this track. We’ve had just one so far this month and I haven’t had a practice because of the weather. But still, I can say it’s my home track for this year and hopefully that helps me.
“GP tracks can be different from league meetings, but we will see. I really enjoy this track in Gorzow and hopefully it won’t matter how they prepare it.
“Hopefully we have a full stadium like always in Poland. I am excited to see a full Edward Jancarz Stadium. The forecast is for warm weather and sunshine. Hopefully we enjoy Saturday evening.”
Lebedevs made an incredible start to the Speedway GP season, reaching his first-ever podium when he finished third at round one in Landshut on May 3. He scored 12 points in each of the two rounds in Warsaw on May 17 and Prague on May 31, but then managed just five points over two days at the Manchester double-header last weekend.
The Daugavpils-born star was gutted to score one point in round four last Friday and four points in round five last Saturday and admits he found the right setup for the National Speedway Stadium circuit – albeit far too late.
He said: “I was very disappointed in myself after Manchester. It was a crazy two days for me. I found a solution with my bikes in the end. I feel bad for me and my mechanics because it took us such a long time to find a good setup for the Manchester track.
“When I got to that last heat on Saturday, I was thinking, ‘We could repeat this meeting, and I would be ready to battle for the final and win every heat.’ That’s how I felt.
“I felt something was wrong with my engine. During the two evenings, I tried four engines, and it wasn’t the engines – just the setup. We found it at the end of the second meeting in Manchester. I am very disappointed about that, and I lost a lot of points over these two days. Hopefully those are the worst rounds this season and the bad results are behind me for this year.
“I am looking forward to getting a good result in Gorzow and that’s the goal. I am ready. I want to give positive emotions for myself, my team and my family.”