Zmarzlik claims Riga Speedway Grand Prix, Ļebedevs climbs overall standings

Reigning world champion Bartosz Zmarzlik was fastest at the eighth round of the Speedway Grand Prix season held in Riga, beating Australia's Brady Kurtz in the final. Kurtz finished third in the final, which allowed Zmarzlik to take the overall season lead by four points.

Before the Riga round, Zmarzlik and Kurtz had been sharing the top of the standings, but the result at the Biķernieki track tipped the balance in the Polish rider's favour.

Latvian riders' performance

Latvia's Andžej Ļebedevs picked up one win, one second place and two third places across his five qualifying heats, finishing on seven points and eighth overall in the qualifying stage, which earned him a place in a run-off heat. His win came in heat seven, where he beat Australia's Jason Doyle, with fellow Latvian Daniils Kolodinskis taking third in that heat.

In the run-off heat, Kurtz led from the start, and Ļebedevs, who tried to challenge him, ultimately finished second behind Doyle and Denmark's Leon Madsen. Kurtz advanced to the final, while Poland's Kacper Woryna qualified from the second run-off heat.

Kolodinskis scored his second point of the night in his final qualifying heat, which pushed the then-leading Kurtz — last year's Riga winner — out of an automatic final spot and into the run-off against Ļebedevs instead.

Ļebedevs finished the round in sixth place with 11 points, his second-best result of the season, lifting him from 12th to 9th in the overall standings with 60 points.

The season resumes in September with two remaining rounds, in Vojens, Denmark, and Toruń, Poland.