2024 Speedway World Championship predictions and betting tips: Lindgren to emerge as Zmarzlik's chief rival

Where to watch the Speedway World Championship

Races will be shown live on Eurosport & Discovery+ throughout the season

Where to watch the Croatian Grand Prix

Eurosport 2 & Discovery+, from 5.30pm Saturday

Best bets

Fredrik Lindgren to win World Championship without Bartosz Zmarzlik
2pts 9-2 bet365

Robert Lambert to win the Croatian Grand Prix
1pt each-way 12-1 Coral, Ladbrokes

Speedway World Championship predictions

Grand Prix speedway springs back into action on Saturday and the new season sees some fresh new faces in the line-up.

Germany’s Kai Huckenbeck, Latvia’s Andzejs Lebedevs and Czech Republic’s Jan Kvech are among those making their debuts as permanent riders with the promoters striving to make the series more global.

If anything, however, the decision dilutes the quality of the field and it’s difficult to envisage any of them threatening the medal spots come the end of the campaign. 

The ultra-consistent Bartosz Zmarzlik is the red-hot 4-7 favourite to claim his fifth world title in six years and, as much as that might appear skinny at first glance, those quotes are fully justified. 

Zmarzlik is quite simply the best rider in world speedway. The Pole had the title sewn up with a round to spare in 2022 and he was always in full control of last year’s championship, despite being forced to miss the Danish Grand Prix for mistakenly wearing a non-conforming race suit during qualifying. 

He ticks every box and it appears only a significant injury can prevent him from clinching gold again come the autumn. 

However, bet365 has an outright market without Zmarzlik and that looks like a more enticing betting heat. 

Leon Madsen undeniably has the pace to challenge for top honours but his habit of throwing in a stinker and his inconsistent gating temper enthusiasm.

Instead, last year’s runner-up Fredrik Lindgren looks the best play. The experienced Swede has struggled with the effects of long Covid in recent years but he enjoyed a career-best season last term, winning in Warsaw and reaching a remarkable eight of the ten finals, which eventually saw him finish a cosy 25-points clear of bronze medalist Martin Vaculik in the standings. 

He’s never been the type to go through the card but his know-how of scoring big points when it matters will stand him in good stead. 

Jack Holder and Robert Lambert also look set for solid campaigns and Lambert can start the series in style by landing a maiden Grand Prix victory in the Croatian curtain-raiser. 

The Briton topped the heat-score chart on his way to finishing runner-up in this event last season and his early-season form for Torun in the Polish league catches the eye.

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