FIM SPEEDWAY: KURTZ EYES FINAL CHARGE
Aussie Champion Brady Kurtz is determined to keep his final charge going as he bids to close on frontrunner Bartosz Zmarzlik at the OlyBet FIM Speedway GP of Latvia – Riga on Saturday, August 2.
The 2024 FIM SGP Challenge winner raced to back-to-back Speedway GP victories in Gorzow and Malilla to move within nine points of reigning champion Zmarzlik with three rounds remaining.
Kurtz faces one of his toughest tests of 2025 this weekend as he heads to a Bikernieki track where he has never previously competed and Zmarzlik has topped the podium twice in 2023 and 2024.
But the Belle Vue skipper knows making the final will be imperative for both riders in what’s shaping up to be a dramatic title fight.
Kurtz said: “Nine points is not a lot at all. I think for sure it can change in one round – both ways. It could be a bigger gap, or I could definitely get rid of it. The way the point system is now, it’s so important to make the final, and Bartek just never misses the damn final.
“The only option I have is to try and keep winning and beating him in the finals, and we’ll see what happens in the last couple of rounds.
“I think it has been a successful year, no matter where we finish. I think that’s maybe where I have the advantage – I am really not concerned about winning, beating him or not. I just want to have fun and race the GPs. I want to stand on the podium, and I’ll stay relaxed and just keep pressuring him.”
At 28 years old, Kurtz is older than many riders who make their full-time Speedway GP debut. His first SGP appearances came as a wild card and track reserve at the 2016 and 2017 FIM Speedway GP of Australia – Melbourne events. But he has gained plenty of experience since then.
He said: “Someone asked me if I feel like I’m the right age, and I feel like I am. I wasn’t in the GP too early. This year was the perfect time for me to be here, and it has been going well.
“I was the wild card in Melbourne, but that was a really long time ago, and obviously I was way too young. I probably didn’t appreciate the opportunity. If only I could go back …
“I think I have learned my lessons over the years. I kept building, learning and improving, and here we are. It might be a few years later than others, but I made it.”
Now Kurtz is ready to test himself on unfamiliar territory in Latvian capital Riga. He admitted: “I am not sure what to think about the next track. I have never seen it. But I will try to learn quickly like I have done on all of the other tracks. We will go for the free practice and hopefully find something that’s working, and we’ll go from there.”
