SGP RESULT

Once again track conditions were the headline grabbers in this year's world championship series with the Tampere track rutting up quite badly throughout, providing a bigger obstacle for the riders than that presented by their rivals.

But, unlike the controversy of Warsaw this second round went the distance and it was Dane Nicki Pedersen who came out on top, his first GP gold medal since winning the Gorican round in 2012. His determination off the start in the final saw him home at the expense of the meeting's top scorer Tai Woffinden who totalled 17 points, despite injuring his shoulder during his semi-final victory to give himself a three point lead, on 22, in the early stages of this year's championship.

For Poole boys Chris Holder and Maciej Janowski it was a night not without it's problems. Janowski starting slowly but then making a good start in his final ride only to be halted with a mechanical fault that left him with just two third places to his name. His night had begun with his machine reluctant to tick over ahead of his opening ride and he frantically had to re-fire it as the two minutes was rapidly counting down. It was sluggish pulling away and that cost him valuable ground.

He was then to benefit from a rare mistake by Woffinden in his second ride, and that error, which relegated the Brit to fourth place was the only appearance in which he failed to win prior to that final. Janowski then looked horns with Pedersen in the battle for second and third during heat 12 whilst former Pirate Krzysztof Kasprzak was making it three wins out of three at the halfway stage.

Janowski's efforts in heat 15 were far more deserving than the last place it resulted in and it looked as though he might finish with a race win until those mechanical gremlins struck again in heat 17.

His retirement ensured a point for Chris Holder, that matching his score from his opening ride when he picked off last year's Finnish winner, Matej Zagar and had to react quickly to avoid rear-ending fellow Aussie Troy Batchelor.

Holder produced a good move from gate 2 in heat 8 to seek out the wider line allowing him to hit the front and then withstand the pressure which came from Tomas H Jonasson who looked pacier but couldn't figure out a route round the 2012 world champion. After running a distant last place in his third ride Holder then found himself having to be at his most ruthless to stave off Pedersen who first passed him in heat 14. Switching lines and then closing off any avenue it was Holder at his very best although Woffinden probably wasn't cursing the fact too much that he had missed the action, for he was building a solid lead of his own out front.

Holder had to confront another Dane is his final programmed ride but this time couldn't hold out Iversen as Andreas Jonsson, benefactor from Janow