Polish Speedway League: Landshut lose to Gdańsk – and finish as runners-up

The team led by team manager Krzysztof Zielinski can be proud of their performance this season, according to the general consensus among the Landshut side following the conclusion of the season in the Polish 3rd Speedway League. After some teething problems at the start, the team put in a brilliant second half of the season on the track and gave the favourites, Gdańsk, a real run for their money in the first final race in Landshut. In the second final race on the Baltic coast, the hosts were already full of confidence during the practice runs, underlining their determination to win and secure promotion.

The race got off to a mixed start for Landshut; it was not until the fourth heat that Tyler Haupt and Jonas Knudsen celebrated a 1–5 victory over Jan Przanowski, with Krystian Pieszczek failing to finish. This was to be the Devils’ only heat win. Gdańsk had already secured victory before the final two heats and were able to celebrate both the overall league title and their long-awaited promotion. In the 14th and 15th heats, Devils riders Kim Nilsson and Jonas Knudsen once again crossed the finish line first, but ultimately these heats ended in a draw and could no longer alter the overall result. With a score of 36–54, the Devils came off second best against the favourites.

The Landshut side lacked strong starts

In the Landshut camp, emotions wavered between disappointment and pride. “Of course, we would have loved to pull off the upset; when you’ve got this far and everything is still up for grabs even after the first final heat, then you want to win – that’s obvious. It wasn’t meant to be; we had clear problems with the starts, and some of our riders struggled to find the right set-up. It was also clear that Danzig were set on victory – they didn’t show any weaknesses that we could have exploited, and they also made up for Tim Sörensen’s last-minute withdrawal,” said club chairman Gerald Simbeck. “Nevertheless, we’re drawing a positive conclusion from the season. Back in the spring, hardly anyone would have tipped us to reach the final. It was impressive to see how the team kept improving and fighting on, despite the odd setback. Every single one of them can be proud of what they’ve achieved over the season.”

Polish League results:

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