THJ GOES TO GOTHENBURG

Swedish hotshot Thomas H Jonasson has been handed the wild card for the FIM Swedish Speedway Grand Prix at Gothenburg's Ullevi Stadium on Saturday, May 14.

The 22-year-old donned the famous No.16 race jacket in the FIM Scandinavian SGP in Malilla last season and bagged a very respectable eight points. This tally would normally be enough to get a rider into the semi-finals, but THJ missed the cut by one in a hotly-contested meeting.

Jonasson qualified as second series reserve for this year's World Championship after finishing sixth in the GP Challenge at Danish track Vojens last August. As a result, he could appear on the SGP circuit again this year if two riders are forced to miss a round through injury, illness or other reasons, or if first reserve Magnus Zetterstrom is unavailable to cover an absence.

The former Swindon man also played a key role in helping Swedish Elitserien side Vetlanda land the title last year. He races alongside SGP regulars Jason Crump, Jaroslaw Hampel and Janusz Kolodziej at the club. Jonasson also rides for Gdansk in the Polish First Division.

THJ is joined in Gothenburg by track reserves Simon Gustafsson and Dennis Andersson.

Gustafsson, who wears the No.17 race jacket, rides for Eastbourne in the British Elite League and Indianerna in Sweden.

Meanwhile, No.18 Andersson is in his debut season for Poole in the Elite League. His sensational performances at reserve have played a huge part in many bookmakers tipping the Pirates for the championship. He also races for Wroclaw in the Polish Ekstraliga and Lejonen in the Elitserien.

The referee for round two of the world championship FIM Speedway Grand Prix series will be Wojciech Grodzki from Poland.