Australia Wins First Speedway World Cup Since 2002

On a humid August night in Warsaw, Australia ended a 24-year wait to reclaim the FIM Speedway World Cup. A final tally of 38 points before 40,000 fans at the National Stadium secured the nation's first title since 2002, an eight-point margin that left Denmark, Poland and Great Britain chasing shadows.

Four heats, one clear signal

The final turned in its opening chapter. Captain Brady Kurtz led from the tapes first, then rookie Ryan Douglas repeated the trick in his debut Cup ride.

Jason Doyle and Max Fricke followed with heat wins of their own, and Australia had four straight victories before a rival nation could answer. The fast start silenced a partisan Polish crowd and built a cushion the squad would manage, never relinquish.

A team double, a grand slam

The 2026 title, paired with the Speedway of Nations crown won the previous year, gave Australia a world team double. For Jason Doyle, the 2017 individual world champion, the medal completed what observers called a historic grand slam across formats.

Fricke and Kurtz carried the closing burden. Fricke delivered under enormous pressure before Kurtz, a first-time World Cup captain, crossed the line to seal the moment.

Australia brought a squad blending veterans and newcomers to the Warsaw final. Debutants Douglas and Rohan Tungate rode alongside established names, and the mix held firm when the arithmetic of qualification tightened in the later heats.

The wait for a World Cup stretched back to a win in 2002, before several members of this squad had turned professional. In Warsaw, that chapter closed quietly, obscured by tyre smoke and the roar of a travelling contingent inside the stadium.