1973 Individual Speedway World Championship

The 1973 Individual Speedway World Championship was the 28th edition of the official World Championship to determine the world champion rider.[1][2][3][4][5][6]

The 1973 World Final was won by Polish rider Jerzy Szczakiel following a run-off in with defending champion Ivan Mauger after both riders had finished on 13 points. On the second lap of the run-off, Mauger fell in turn 3 after trying a risky passing move leaving Szczakiel to win easily. Another Polish rider, Zenon Plech finished third. Rank outsider Szczakiel, who had finished last with no points scored in his only other World Final appearance in Sweden in 1971, rode the meeting of his life and was only beaten in his final two rides before defeating Mauger in the run-off.[7]

The final, held at the Silesian Stadium in Chorzów, Poland, is believed to have been held in front of the largest crowd in world speedway history, estimated to be around 130,000, though some reports put the size of the crowd as anywhere from 90,000 to 120,000.[8] The previous record for a final was 95,000 during the 1938 Individual Speedway World Championship at Wembley.

Format changes

The format of the Championship changed for the 1973 event. This time the Polish riders were allowed five places in the World Final to be held in Poland. All other nations had to go through the European Final route to provide the remaining 11 riders for the World Final.[9][10]

First round

British/Commonwealth preliminaries

  • Riders progress to British/Commonwealth qualifiers
Date Venue Winner 2nd 3rd
29 AprilArlington Stadium, EastbourneGordon KennettPaul GachetBobby McNeil
29 AprilBoston Sports Stadium, BostonGraeme StapletonJohn DewsRuss Osborne
2 MayOdsal Stadium, BradfordNeil StreetBilly SandersRick France
7 MayEarle Street, CreweMitch GrahamArthur PriceLes Owen
7 MayBirchfield Ladbroke Stadium, BirminghamJim RymanBob PaulsonTed Howgego

Second round

Norwegian qualifying

Pos.RiderPoints
1Ulf Lövaas14
2Dag Lövaas12
3Odd Fossengen11
4Helge Langli11
5Svein Kaasa9
6Oyvind S. Berg9
7Edgar Stangeland9
8Reidar Eide9
9Tormod Langli8
10Hans Erik Fuglerud7
11Johnny Larsen7
12Per Hetland5
13Svein Lökken3
14Kjell Gimre3
15Jan Jacobsen2
16Öyvind Rökeberg0

Finnish qualifying (top 10)

Pos.RiderPointsTotal (best 2)
1Matti Olin8+8+016
2Hannu Känkänen4+6+814
3Kalevi Lahtinen6+0+612
4Heikki Ahonen1+3+47
5Kari Vuoristo3+2+05
6Pekka Paljakka0+4+04
7Matti Touru0+0+33
8Tapio Leppasalko2+1+03
9Jouko Naskali0+0+22
10Timo Naskali0+0+11

Swedish qualifying

  • Top 8 in each heat to Nordic qualification

Continental qualifying

  • Rider progress to Continental quarter-finals
Date Venue Winner 2nd 3rd
29 April Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Mladost Stadum, PrelogCzechoslovakia Zdenek MajstrCzechoslovakia Evzen ErbanAustria Jozef Haider
6 May West Germany Motodrom Halbemond, NordenCzechoslovakia Jan HadekCzechoslovakia Jiri DominikNetherlands Henny Kroeze

British/Commonwealth qualifiers

  • Top riders progress to British/Commonwealth semi-finals
Date Venue Winner 2nd 3rd
12 MayKing's Lynn Stadium, King's LynnJohn LouisTerry BettsMalcolm Simmons
14 MayReading Stadium, ReadingMartin AshbyMick BellGeoff Curtis
16 MayWimborne Road, PoolePete SmithRay WilsonTerry Betts
17 MayOwlerton Stadium, SheffieldJim McMillanArnie HaleyDoug Wyer
18 MayMonmore Green, WolverhamptonGeorge HunterRay WilsonGary Peterson
18 MayHackney Wick Stadium, LondonTerry BettsBob ValentineBarry Thomas
19 MayThe Shay, HalifaxJohn BoulgerEric BoocockBill Andrew
19 MayDudley Wood Stadium, DudleyJohn LouisBruce CribbColin Gooddy
19 MayAbbey Stadium, SwindonJim McMillanDoug WyerTony Davey
19 MayHyde Road, ManchesterIvan MaugerChris PuseyEric Broadbelt
21 MayCounty Ground Stadium, ExeterIvan MaugerMartin AshbyBob Coles
22 MayLeicester Stadium, LeicesterJohn BoulgerRay WilsonBob Kilby
23 MaySomerton Park, NewportEric BoocockRoy TriggGary Peterson
24 MayWimbledon Stadium, LondonPeter CollinsNorman HunterIan Turner
24 MayOxford Stadium, OxfordBob KilbyMalcolm BallardEric Boocock
25 MayCliftonhill, CoatbridgeMick BellJohn BoulgerChris Julian
26 MayBrandon Stadium, CoventryNigel BoocockRay WilsonBob Kilby
29 MayFoxhall Stadium, IpswichIvan MaugerTony DaveyMick Bell

Third round

Continental quarter-finals

  • Top 32 to Continental semi-finals
Date Venue Winner 2nd 3rd
10 MayCzechoslovakia Svítkov Stadium, PardubiceSoviet Union Vladimir ZapleshnyCzechoslovakia Jiří ŠtanclCzechoslovakia Miloslav Verner
20 MayHungary Borsod Volán Stadion, MiskolcSoviet Union Grigory KhlinovskySoviet Union Viktor TrofimovSoviet Union Aleksandr Pavlov
20 MayWest Germany Breitenthal Stadium, KrumbachCzechoslovakia Milan ŠpinkaSoviet Union Vladimir PaznikovCzechoslovakia Jan Holub I
20 MaySocialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Matija Gubec Stadium, KrškoSoviet Union Anatoly KuzminSoviet Union Vladimir GordeevCzechoslovakia Petr Ondrašík

British/Commonwealth semi-finals

Pos.RiderPoints
1New Zealand Ivan Mauger14
2England John Louis13
3England Chris Pusey12
4Scotland Jim Mcmillan10
5England Rick France9
6England Peter Collins9
7Australia Bob Valentine8
8England Tony Davey8
9Australia Garry Middleton8
10England Alan Wilkinson7
11England Doug Wyer7
12England Arnie Haley6
13Australia Bob Humphreys6
14England Eric Broadbelt2
15England Bob Kilby1
16England Nigel Boocock0
Pos.RiderPoints
1Australia John Boulger14
2England Martin Ashby13
3England Eric Boocock10
4England Malcolm Simmons10
5England Ray Wilson10
6England Terry Betts10
7England Mick Bell9
8England Pete Smith9
9England Roy Trigg7
10England Gary Peterson5
11England Barry Thomas5
12England Malcolm Ballard5
13England Geoff Maloney4
14Scotland George Hunter3
15New Zealand Bruce Cribb3
16New Zealand Bill Andrew1

Nordic qualification

  • Top 5 from each meeting to Nordic final

Fourth round

Continental semi-finals

Pos.RiderPoints
1Soviet Union Grigory Khlinovsky13
2Soviet Union Valerij Gordeev13
3Czechoslovakia Václav Verner12
4Czechoslovakia Milan Špinka12
5Soviet Union Vladimir Paznikov12
6Soviet Union Viktor Trofimov7
7Soviet Union Alexander Pavlov7
8West Germany Josef Angermüller7
9Soviet Union Oleg Dziadyk7
10Czechoslovakia Jan Klokocka7
11West Germany Manfred Poschenreider6
12Czechoslovakia Jan Holub I6
13Soviet Union Georgij Ivanov4
14Czechoslovakia Miroslav Rosulek3
15Soviet Union Vladimir Tchistiakov (res)1
16Soviet Union Yury Dubinin0
17Soviet Union Petr Safarik0
18West Germany Otto Barth (res)0
Pos.RiderPoints
1Soviet Union Vladimir Gordeev15
2Czechoslovakia Jiří Štancl13
3Soviet Union Anatolij Kuzmin12
4Soviet Union Vladimir Zaplechny11
5Czechoslovakia Zdeněk Majstr11
6Czechoslovakia Karel Vobornik10
7Czechoslovakia Miroslav Verner10
8Czechoslovakia Petr Ondrašík8
9Czechoslovakia Petr Kucera6
10Soviet Union Nikolai Aksjonov5
11Soviet Union Gregorij Markatanov4
12Netherlands Henny Kroeze4
13Soviet Union Nikolaj Kornev4
14East Germany Gerhard Uhlenbrock3
15Austria Josef Bössner2
16Hungary Pal Pereny1

British/Commonwealth Final

Placing Rider Total 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Pts Pos 21
1 England (15) Ray Wilson 15 3 3 3 3 3 15 1
2 Australia (10) Bob Valentine 12 3 3 2 2 2 12 2 3
3 England (13) Peter Collins 12 2 3 3 2 2 12 3 2
4 Australia (3) John Boulger 12 2 1 3 3 3 12 4 1
5 New Zealand (2) Ivan Mauger 10 3 1 3 3 T 10 5
6 England (7) Eric Boocock 9 2 2 0 3 2 9 6
7 England (8) Tony Davey 9 3 2 2 1 1 9 7
8 England (16) Rick France 9 1 2 2 1 3 9 8
9 England (6) John Louis 7 F 0 3 3 1 7 9
10 England (4) Martin Ashby 6 1 3 1 1 0 6 10
11 Australia (5) Garry Middleton 5 1 0 1 0 3 5 11
12 England (14) Peter Smith 5 0 2 1 1 1 5 12
13 England (9) Terry Betts 4 1 2 F F 1 4 13
14 England (11) Mick Bell 4 2 0 0 0 2 4 14
15 England (1) Malcolm Simmons 2 0 1 1 0 0 2 15
16 Scotland (12) Jim McMillan 2 0 0 0 2 0 2 16
R1 England (R1) Chris Pusey 0 0 R1
Placing Rider Total 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Pts Pos 21

m - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance • t - exclusion for touching the tapes • x - other exclusion • e - retired or mechanical failure • f - fell • ns - non-starter • nc - non-classify

gate A - inside gate B gate C gate D - outside

Nordic Final

Placing Rider Total 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Pts Pos 21
1 Denmark (6) Ole Olsen 15 3 3 3 3 3 15 1
2 Sweden (5) Bengt Jansson 14 2 3 3 3 3 14 2
3 Sweden (7) Anders Michanek 13 1 3 3 3 3 13 3
4 Sweden (8) Bernt Persson 12 0 3 3 3 3 12 4
5 Sweden (3) Tommy Jansson 10 3 1 2 2 2 10 5
6 Sweden (4) Jan Simensen 9 1 2 2 2 2 9 6
7 Norway (13) Reidar Eide 9 3 2 1 2 1 9 7
8 Sweden (11) Göte Nordin 8 3 2 1 1 1 8 8 3
9 Sweden (1) Christer Löfqvist 8 2 1 2 1 2 8 9 F
10 Sweden (9) Lars Jansson 5 2 0 1 0 2 5 10
11 Sweden (12) Christer Sjösten 4 F E 2 2 0 4 11
12 Norway (10) Øyvind S. Berg 4 1 1 0 1 1 4 12
13 Norway (2) Dag Lovaas 3 F 2 1 0 0 3 13
14 Sweden (15) Hasse Holmqvist 3 2 0 0 1 0 3 14
15 Sweden (16) Tommy Johansson 1 1 E E - - 1 15
16 Norway (14) Odd Fossengen 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 16
R1 Sweden (R1) Leif Enecrona 1 0 1 1 R1
Placing Rider Total 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Pts Pos 21

m - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance • t - exclusion for touching the tapes • x - other exclusion • e - retired or mechanical failure • f - fell • ns - non-starter • nc - non-classify

gate A - inside gate B gate C gate D - outside

Fifth round

British/Commonwealth/Nordic Final

Placing Rider Total 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Pts Pos 21
1 Sweden (13) Anders Michanek 14 3 3 2 3 3 14 1
2 Denmark (8) Ole Olsen 11 T 3 3 2 3 11 2
3 New Zealand (4) Ivan Mauger 11 1 2 3 3 2 11 3
4 Sweden (2) Tommy Jansson 10 2 3 2 1 2 10 4
5 Australia (7) John Boulger 10 2 3 1 3 1 10 5
6 England (11) Peter Collins 9 3 2 3 0 1 9 6
7 England (16) Ray Wilson 9 E 1 2 3 3 9 7
8 Sweden (15) Bernt Persson 9 2 E 3 2 2 9 8
9 Australia (1) Bob Valentine 8 3 2 0 2 1 8 9
10 Norway (6) Reidar Eide 5 1 2 1 1 0 5 10
11 Sweden (14) Göte Nordin 5 1 1 2 1 0 5 11
12 Sweden (10) Bengt Jansson 3 2 F F 1 E 3 12
13 Sweden (9) Jan Simensen 2 1 0 1 0 0 2 13
14 England (12) Tony Davey 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 14
15 England (3) Eric Boocock 0 0 T - - - 0 15
DQ England (5) John Louis 10 3 1 1 2 3 10 DQ
R1 Australia (R1) Garry Middleton 2 T 0 2 2 R1
Placing Rider Total 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Pts Pos 21

m - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance • t - exclusion for touching the tapes • x - other exclusion • e - retired or mechanical failure • f - fell • ns - non-starter • nc - non-classify

gate A - inside gate B gate C gate D - outside

Continental Final

Placing Rider Total 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Pts Pos 21
1 Soviet Union (15) Valery Gordeev 13 3 3 2 2 3 13 1
2 Soviet Union (4) Grigory Khlinovsky 12 2 3 3 1 3 12 2
3 Soviet Union (16) Vladimir Zapleshny 12 2 2 2 3 3 12 3
4 Soviet Union (6) Vladimir Gordeev 11.5 3 3 1/2 3 2 11.5 4
5 Soviet Union (1) Viktor Trofimov 11.5 3 3 1/2 3 2 11.5 5
6 Soviet Union (12) Aleksandr Pavlov 11 3 0 3 2 3 11 6
7 Soviet Union (8) Anatoly Kuzmin 10 2 1 3 3 1 10 7
8 Soviet Union (11) Vladimir Paznikov 10 1 2 3 2 2 10 8
9 Czechoslovakia (9) Jiri Stancl 8 2 2 2 0 2 8 9
10 Czechoslovakia (3) Petr Ondrašík 5 1 1 0 2 1 5 10
11 Czechoslovakia (14) Milan Špinka 5 1 2 1 X 1 5 11
12 Czechoslovakia (13) Václav Verner 4 0 1 2 1 0 4 12
13 Czechoslovakia (5) Miloslav Verner 3 1 0 1 1 0 3 13
14 West Germany (7) Josef Angermüller 3 0 0 1 1 1 3 14
15 Czechoslovakia (10) Karol Vobornik 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 15
16 Czechoslovakia (2) Petr Kučera 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 16
Placing Rider Total 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Pts Pos 21

m - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance • t - exclusion for touching the tapes • x - other exclusion • e - retired or mechanical failure • f - fell • ns - non-starter • nc - non-classify

gate A - inside gate B gate C gate D - outside

Sixth round

Polish qualifiers

European Final

Placing Rider Total 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Pts Pos 21
1 Sweden (7) Anders Michanek 15 3 3 3 3 3 15 1
2 New Zealand (5) Ivan Mauger 14 2 3 3 3 3 14 2
3 Soviet Union (13) Vladimir Paznikov 12 3 2 1 3 3 12 3
4 Sweden (4) Bernt Persson 10 0 3 2 3 2 10 4
5 Soviet Union (9) Vladimir Zapleshny 9 3 0 2 2 2 9 5
6 England (16) Peter Collins 9 2 2 3 2 E 9 6
7 Soviet Union (14) Valery Gordeev 8 F 3 3 1 1 8 7
8 Denmark (11) Ole Olsen 8 2 2 2 2 - 8 8
9 Soviet Union (1) Grigory Khlinovsky 7 1 1 0 2 3 7 9
10 Australia (3) John Boulger 7 3 1 1 1 1 7 10
11 England (2) Ray Wilson 6 2 2 F 1 1 6 11
12 Sweden (6) Bengt Jansson 6 1 1 1 1 2 6 12
13 Soviet Union (15) Aleksandr Pavlov 4 1 0 2 0 1 4 13
14 Czechoslovakia (8) Jiri Stancl 2 0 0 0 0 2 2 14
15 Soviet Union (12) Viktor Trofimov 2 0 1 1 0 0 2 15
16 Soviet Union (10) Anatoly Kuzmin 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 16
R1 East Germany (R1) Otto Barth 0 0 0 R1
Placing Rider Total 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Pts Pos 21

m - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance • t - exclusion for touching the tapes • x - other exclusion • e - retired or mechanical failure • f - fell • ns - non-starter • nc - non-classify

gate A - inside gate B gate C gate D - outside

World Final

Final Controversy

The Final was surrounded by controversy, with decisions made by Georg Traunspurger, the referee assigned to the meeting by the FIM, seeming to favour the Polish riders. One of his decisions was to have 2nd reserve Andrzej Wyglenda of Poland race in Heat 16 in front of 1st reserve Tommy Jansson of Sweden (after Bernt Persson of Sweden was unable to ride), making it four Polish riders in the race. In the race, second placed Edward Jancarz, who led for the first three laps, seemed to let Zenon Plech take the lead in the final turn, allowing Plech, who had more points at that stage of the meeting, to collect another three points for the win.

His most controversial decision was to exclude Soviet rider Grigory Khlinovsky from heat 19. Khlinovsky had attempted to pass on the inside of Zenon Plech for the lead going into the back straight of the last lap. As he was passed by the Russian, Plech lost control of his bike and fell. Despite protests from riders and the Soviet officials Khlinovsky was excluded and England's Peter Collins, who was in 3rd place at the time of the crash, was awarded the heat win, Plech, who didn't actually finish the race, was awarded 2nd. The result of the two points he gained for second place allowed Plech to finish a clear third in the championship. Had Khlinovsky been the winner of the heat, he would have ended on 13 points, which would have put him in the run-off for the title with Szczakiel and Mauger.[11]

British television commentator Dave Lanning called the ruling "The craziest piece of speedway regulations in the history of World Championship racing", before adding that "It seems to me that the authorities here in Katowice are making up the rules to suit themselves to get their boys a world title."

Final result

Placing Rider Total 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Pts Pos 21
1 Poland (16) Jerzy Szczakiel 13 3 3 3 2 2 13 1 3
2 New Zealand (8) Ivan Mauger 13 3 1 3 3 3 13 2 F
3 Poland (6) Zenon Plech 12 2 3 2 3 2 12 3
4 Denmark (7) Ole Olsen 11 1 2 3 2 3 11 4
5 Soviet Union (3) Grigory Khlinovsky 10 2 3 2 3 X 10 5
6 Soviet Union (2) Vladimir Paznikov 8 3 1 2 1 1 8 6
7 Poland (4) Paweł Waloszek 8 1 2 1 1 3 8 7
8 Soviet Union (12) Valery Gordeev 7 2 0 1 3 1 7 8
9 Poland (11) Jan Mucha 7 1 1 1 2 2 7 9
10 Sweden (1) Anders Michanek 6 0 3 X 1 2 6 10
11 Poland (9) Edward Jancarz 6 3 1 0 2 0 6 11
12 England (13) Peter Collins 6 1 0 2 0 3 6 12
13 Australia (14) John Boulger 6 2 2 1 0 1 6 13
14 England (5) Ray Wilson 5 F 2 3 0 F 5 14
15 Soviet Union (10) Vladimir Zapleshny 2 0 0 0 1 1 2 15
16 Sweden (15) Bernt Persson 0 F 0 R - - 0 16
R1 Poland (R1) Andrzej Wyglenda 0 0 0 R1
R2 Sweden (R2) Tommy Jansson 0 0 0 R2
Placing Rider Total 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Pts Pos 21

m - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance • t - exclusion for touching the tapes • x - other exclusion • e - retired or mechanical failure • f - fell • ns - non-starter • nc - non-classify

gate A - inside gate B gate C gate D - outside

References

  1. ↑ Oakes, Peter (1981). 1981 Speedway Yearbook. Studio Publications (Ipswich) Ltd. pp. 20–21. ISBN 0-86215-017-5.
  2. ↑ "World Championship 1936-1994". Edinburgh Speedway. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
  3. ↑ "WORLD FINALS 1936-1994" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
  4. ↑ "HISTORY SPEEDWAY and LONGTRACK". Speedway.org. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
  5. ↑ "Speedway riders, history and results". wwosbackup. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
  6. ↑ "WORLD INDIVIDUAL FINAL - RIDER INDEX". British Speedway. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
  7. ↑ "Unknown Pole wins crown from Mauger". Newcastle Evening Chronicle. 3 September 1973. Retrieved 6 April 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  8. ↑ Katowice 1973
  9. ↑ "1973 World Championship". Metal Speedway. Retrieved 20 January 2024.
  10. ↑ "1973 World Championship". Speedway.org. Retrieved 20 January 2024.
  11. ↑ YouTube
  12. ↑ Bamford, R. & Shailes, G. (2002). A History of the World Speedway Championship. Stroud: Tempus Publishing. ISBN 0-7524-2402-5
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