Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/314586
IN THE WIND P20 ZAGAR GETS HIS FIRST S lovenian star Matej Zagar praised his loved ones and fans who never stopped believ- ing he could be an FIM Speed- way Grand Prix winner after he won the Mitas Finnish Speedway Grand Prix in Tampere on Satur- day night. The 31-year-old claimed his first World Championship victory in his 44th attempt in the Ratina Stadium after diving past World Champion Tai Woffinden, when he briefly lost control in the final. Zagar triumphed ahead of the Brit, Swedish racer Freddie Lind- gren and American legend Greg Hancock. Along with Australia's Troy Batchelor, who is new to the World Championship this sea- son, Zagar was the only full-time SGP rider who had not won a round. "It doesn't just mean a lot to me," Zagar said. "My family at home are going crazy at the mo- ment! I hope I gave them the sat- isfaction they didn't have for three years I raced in the Grand Prix without winning one and it's a big thing for me as well. It took me a while to win a Grand Prix and maybe a bit longer than everyone else. But I've done it and I want to say a big thank you to my team. They've done a great job and have showed a lot of patience with me, and so have my family and my sponsors. They've always believed and kept me going." Zagar's win came with 15 points, which still leaves him 10th in the World Championship standings on 27. But he trails se- ries leader Krzysztof Kasprzak by a meager eight points after the Pole pulled out of the meet- ing during practice with a cruci- ate ligament injury in his knee. Runner-up Tai Woffinden bounced back from a testing start to the season by top scor- ing with 16 points. The defending World Champion has been bat- tling to get back to the form. "Turning things around comes from hard work and dedication," he said. "If you put the work in, you get rewarded for it." Hancock's fourth-place fin- ish moves him to second in the World Championship – just a single point behind Kasprzak. John Hipkiss PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOHN HIPKISS To the victor goes the Monster girls: Matej Zagar celebrates his first- career Speedway Grand Prix victory in Finland. MARQUEZ SIGNS, NOW WHAT? W ith all top riders in MotoGP coming up to contract time at the end of the current season, rumors about next year's signings have started earlier than ever. Now, thanks to Marc Marquez, the signings themselves have followed suit. The World Champion has signed on the dotted line for two more