Latvian ace Andzejs Lebedevs is determined to deliver more races that send the Bikernieki crowd wild at the OlyBet FIM Speedway GP of Latvia – Riga on Saturday night (19:00 local time / 18:00 CEST / 17:00 UK).

Fans flock to the Latvian capital, where very limited tickets remain for the nation’s biggest speedway event – staged at the country’s top motorsport venue for the third straight season.

Lebedevs ensured the home fans had plenty to celebrate in 2024, when he stormed to the top of the heat score chart with 14 race points, achieving four wins and a second place during the heats, only to suffer a cruel exit as he finished behind Fredrik Lindgren, Bartosz Zmarzlik and Robert Lambert – the eventual 2024 Speedway GP World Championship top three – in semi-final one.

Under the 2025 Speedway GP race format, Lebedevs’ 2024 heat score would be enough to send him straight through to final, without contesting the new last-chance qualifiers, so he’s keen to produce a repeat performance. 

The energy in the Bikernieki stands as Lebedevs took the fight to the world’s elite was extraordinary, and he would love to repay a partisan Latvian crowd with a night to remember. 

He said: “Last year was super nice. I didn’t make the final, but if I have a heat score like I did last year again this season, I will be in the final for sure. Everything around me, my bikes and the mental side of me, will be ready for Saturday evening.

“I am super excited and fully focused, and hopefully I can make it happen. Just like last year, I want to give everything possible to deliver heats where the crowd explodes. That’s important because these people come to support me, and I can make this evening for these people.

“Hopefully I can send them out of this stadium with a positive vibe for the rest of the evening and hopefully people will be speaking for all of next week about how good it was.

“I want a good party for me and the fans who come to support me. I hope everyone comes and enjoys it. It’s a special event for me and hopefully for all of the fans across Europe and around the world. I welcome everyone and I hope they enjoy their stay in Riga.” 

The stakes are high in Riga – and not only for Lebedevs. Poland’s five-time Speedway GP world champion Bartosz Zmarzlik bids for his third straight Riga win in his quest to seal a record-equalling sixth SGP world title.

He holds a nine-point lead at the top of the standings on 131 points and hopes to fend off a growing challenge from Australian champion Brady Kurtz, who has 122 and won the last two SGPs in Gorzow, Poland and Malilla, Sweden as he aims to become the first rider to win the world title in their debut Speedway GP season, aside from inaugural SGP champion Hans Nielsen in 1995.

Poland's Bartosz Zmarzlik topped the Riga podium with Lindgren second in both 2023 and 2024. PHOTO: Jarek PabijanPoland’s Bartosz Zmarzlik topped the Riga podium with Lindgren second in both 2023 and 2024. PHOTO: Jarek Pabijan

The battle for bronze is also getting tense as Sweden’s world No.3 Fredrik Lindgren bids to build on his two second places in Riga in 2023 and 2024. He is on 99 points – two clear of Great Britain star Dan Bewley, who is fourth on 97. Aussie ace Jack Holder is fifth on 86.

Lebedevs is sixth in the Speedway GP World Championship on 59 points, level with Aussie star Max Fricke in seventh. The top seven riders in the standings secure automatic qualification for the 2026 series. Given that just 14 points separate Lebedevs in sixth spot from Denmark’s Anders Thomsen in 12th place, the final qualification berths are still very much up for grabs with three rounds remaining in Riga, Polish city Wroclaw on August 30 and Danish club Vojens on September 13.

Lebedevs insists he’s only focused on his own form rather than the race for the top seven. He said: “I am not watching the standings really. I just want to have a nice next three rounds and then we will see what we have done.

“It doesn’t matter what happens behind me. I am looking forward to and excited for every heat that awaits me in the GPs.

“I want to enjoy the GP series; I want to enjoy being a World-Championship rider, and I just want to show a World-Championship level. That is my main goal. I am just focused on this, and I just want to enjoy my racing.” 

2025 OLYBET FIM SPEEDWAY GP OF LATVIA – RIGA LINE-UP:
95. Bartosz Zmarzlik (Poland)
505. Robert Lambert (Great Britain)
66. Fredrik Lindgren (Sweden)
99. Dan Bewley (Great Britain)
54. Martin Vaculik (Slovakia)
25. Jack Holder (Australia)
155. Mikkel Michelsen (Denmark)
415. Dominik Kubera (Poland)
29. Andzejs Lebedevs (Latvia)
46. Max Fricke (Australia)
744. Kai Huckenbeck (Germany)
201. Jan Kvech (Czechia)
69. Jason Doyle (Australia)
105. Anders Thomsen (Denmark)
101. Brady Kurtz (Australia)
16. Jevgenijs Kostigovs (Latvia – wild card)
17. Francis Gusts (Latvia – first track reserve)
18. Olegs Mihailovs (Latvia – second track reserve) 

Lebedevs meeting a young fan in Riga. PHOTO: Marcin KarczewskiLebedevs meeting a young fan in Riga. PHOTO: Marcin Karczewski

RIGA FANZONE

The action starts well before the racing at Bikernieki as the OlyBet FIM Speedway GP of Latvia – Riga fanzone opens at 13:30 local time on Saturday.

Located immediately inside the main entrance gate behind bend one, the fanzone features the official Speedway GP autograph session, where fans can meet all 18 riders from 16:30 and grab a signature or selfie.

Pick up some exclusive freebies from Monster Energy athletes Fredrik Lindgren, Dan Bewley and Jack Holder at the Monster Energy Rig Riot from 17:00. The Monster Energy area will be open from 13:40.

We will have an interview with special VIP guests from 17:45, and fans can win Speedway GP prizes in our quiz at 15:15. 

Pose for a photo with the Speedway GP trophy throughout the afternoon and the best of the 2024 SGP events will be playing on the big screen, where fans can catch Qualifying from 14:00.

Meet FIM Speedway mascot Speedy, who will be in the fanzone at 13:50 and 15:30. There will be a vintage speedway bikes exhibition, other photo opportunities, the We Love Speedway sign, food and drink stalls, the Speedway GP merchandise shop and much, much more.

The fanzone closes at 18:30 ahead of the opening ceremony at 18:45, with racing getting underway at around 19:00. 

Crowds enjoy the Riga fanzone. PHOTO: Marcin KarczewskiCrowds enjoy the Riga fanzone. PHOTO: Marcin Karczewski

WHERE TO WATCH THIS WEEKEND: TUNE INTO HBO MAX

OlyBet FIM Speedway GP of Latvia – Riga – Saturday, August 2 at 19:00 local / 18:00 CEST / 17:00 UK

Fans can catch every moment of FIM Speedway action live on Warner Bros. Discovery’s streaming platforms HBO Max or discovery+. Coverage of every Speedway GP Qualifying session, featuring a brand-new knockout format for 2025, is also available on these platforms.

HBO Max is available in Europe in France, Iberia, Belgium, the Netherlands, the Nordics, Turkey and Central and Eastern Europe. And discovery+ is the streaming platform for Germany, Austria, Italy and the United Kingdom ahead of HBO Max launching in these countries in 2026.

Speedway GP is available worldwide with digital and linear coverage – see below for more details of where to watch.

ACROSS EUROPE: Live on HBO Max and discovery+
BRITAIN: Live on discovery+ and TNT Sports
POLAND: Live on HBO Max
SWEDEN: Live on HBO Max
DENMARK: Live on 6’eren and HBO Max
AUSTRALIA: Live on Fox Sports
GERMANY: Live on discovery+
ACROSS THE BALTICS: Live on Go3 and TV3 Sport channels
CZECHIA: Live on HBO Max and CT Sport
SLOVAKIA: Live on STVR Sport and HBO Max
CROATIA: Live on HBO Max
USA/CANADA: Live on Racer Network
AUSTRIA: Live on discovery+
NORWAY: Live on HBO Max
FINLAND: Live on HBO Max
REST OF THE WORLD: Live on Racer Network