# Bartosz Zmarzlik seals record-equalling sixth Speedway GP world title

The Polish rider held off Brady Kurtz in Vojens to join the sport’s six-time champions and retain the crown by one point.

Event date: 2025-09-13.

Bartosz Zmarzlik has won a record-equalling sixth Speedway Grand Prix world championship after finishing second in the final round at Vojens, Denmark, just enough to stay ahead of Australian rival Brady Kurtz in the season standings. The result put Zmarzlik alongside New Zealand’s Ivan Mauger and Sweden’s Tony Rickardsson on six world titles and made him the first rider in the sport’s history to win four championships in a row.

The title fight went all the way to the final race. Zmarzlik and Kurtz reached the Vojens final, where Kurtz extended his winning streak to five straight Grand Prix victories. But Zmarzlik took the second place he needed to secure the championship by a single point. The atmosphere matched the stakes, with the sport’s season ending in a straight duel between the defending champion and the rider trying to dethrone him.

The weekend also delivered other major milestones. Danish wild card Michael Jepsen Jensen finished third in the Grand Prix on his first SGP appearance since 2018, and Great Britain’s Dan Bewley claimed bronze in the world championship standings after finishing fourth in the event. For Bewley, it was his first podium finish in the series.

Zmarzlik said the pressure was real, describing the race as the most high-stakes of his career so far. He also thanked Kurtz for pushing him throughout the season and said he was grateful for the challenge. The Polish rider’s comments suggested the emotional load of a championship defense that had been tight from start to finish.

Kurtz, for his part, finished runner-up in the world standings after an extraordinary run of late-season form. He had won five consecutive Grand Prix rounds before Vojens, a streak that brought him within striking distance of the title. Even so, the final standings left him one point short of the sport’s biggest prize.

The Vojens event carried extra weight because it marked the 50th anniversary of racing at the Danish venue. It also capped a season in which the world championship kept shifting between the same small group of riders, with Zmarzlik again proving the most consistent over the full campaign.

The title means Zmarzlik now heads into 2026 with a chance to become the first rider ever to win seven Speedway GP world championships. At 30, he remains close to his peak and still has time to extend a record that already places him among the sport’s greats.

For now, the 2025 season ends with a familiar conclusion: Zmarzlik on top, Kurtz close behind, and the championship decided only in the final moments of the final meeting.