1978 Individual Speedway World Championship

The 1978 Individual Speedway World Championship was the 33rd edition of the official World Championship to determine the world champion rider.[1][2][3][4][5]

Ole Olsen won his third world crown. The final was sponsored by the Sunday Mirror and was attended by 86,500. Gordon Kennett took silver on the day of his 25th birthday and American Scott Autrey won the bronze medal run-off defeating Dave Jessup and Jerzy Rembas.[6] Dave Jessup was effectively denied a World title when after leading in heat 3 he suffered a bike malfunction and finished last in the heat. He then scored 11 points from his remaining rides which would have been enough to take the crown if he had won heat 3.[7]

Qualification results.[8][9]

Second round

Australian qualifying

  • Top 16 to Australian final
Date Venue Winner 2nd 3rd
? '77 ?Danny KennedyRod HunterJohn McNeill
26 Nov '77Carina Speedway, BundabergBilly SandersPhil HernePaul O'Neil
10 Dec '77Showground Speedway, SydneyBilly SandersPhil HernePaul O'Neil
6 JanClaremont Speedway, PerthLloyd CrossLes LeiskNeil Webb
13 JanRowley Park, AdelaideJohn BoulgerTony BoyleRob Maxfield
27 JanRowley Park, AdelaideJohn BoulgerDanny KennedyTony Boyle
30 JanShowground Speedway, SydneyJohn TitmanPhil HerneBilly Sanders

New Zealand qualifying

  • Top 16 to New Zealand final
Date Venue Winner 2nd 3rd
5 FebRuapuna Speedway, ChristchurchLarry RossBarry BriggsJames Moore

British preliminary round

  • Rider progress to British qualifying round
Date Venue Winner 2nd 3rd
16 AprilRye House Stadium, HoddesdonTed HubbardKelvin MullarkeyVic Harding
16 AprilBoston Sports Stadium, BostonSteve WeatherleyTom OwenChris Turner
20 AprilCleveland Park, MiddlesbroughMike SampsonPhil CollinsPaul Tyrer
23 AprilMildenhall Stadium, MildenhallMartin YeatesRichard GreerBob Coles
27 AprilOxford Stadium, OxfordDave PerksGeoff BouchardSteve Finch

Continental preliminary round

  • Riders progress to Continental quarter-finals
Date Venue Winner 2nd 3rd
22 April Slaný Speedway Stadium, Slany Boleslaw Proch Jerzy Kochman Rudi Muts
23 April Kovinar Stadium, Maribor Jan Hadek Sandro Pastoreli Angel Jeftimov

Swedish qualification

  • Top 5 in each heat to Swedish final

Third round

Continental quarter-finals

  • Top 32 to Continental semi-finals
Date Venue Winner 2nd 3rd
7 May Castiglione Olona Speedway, Varese Egon Muller Grigory Khlinovsky Jerzy Rembas
7 May Borsod Volán Stadion, Miskolc Mikhail Starostin Andrzej Huszcza Václav Verner
7 May Breitenthal Stadium, Krumbach Georg Hack Ales Dryml, Sr Nikolay Kornev
7 May Municipal Stadium, Częstochowa Marek Cieślak Jiří Štancl Zdeněk Kudrna

British qualifying round

The British qualifying rounds for the World Championship doubled up as qualifying rounds for the Volkswagen/Daily Mirror Grand Prix. Therefore, many non-British riders rode in these meetings scoring points towards the Volkswagen/Daily Mirror Grand Prix qualification - but their scores didn't count towards World Championship qualification. The top 32 British riders qualified for the british semi-finals.

Date Venue Winner 2nd 3rd
11 MayWimbledon Stadium, LondonPeter CollinsBob KilbyDave Jessup
11 MayOwlerton Stadium, SheffieldIvan MaugerDoug WyerSteve Bastable
12 MayHackney Wick Stadium, LondonDave JessupTerry BettsFinn Thomsen
13 MayHyde Road, ManchesterPeter CollinsChris MortonBobby Beaton
13 MayKing's Lynn Stadium, King's LynnMichael LeeJohn TitmanMalcolm Simmons
13 MayBrandon Stadium, CoventryAlan MolyneuxKeith WhiteBilly Sanders
15 MaySmallmead Stadium, ReadingGordon KennettBilly SandersJohn Davis
15 MayCounty Ground Stadium, ExeterPhil CrumpVáclav VernerMike Farrell
15 MayBirchfield Ladbroke Stadium, BirminghamRay WilsonJohn TitmanMike Lanham
16 MayLeicester Stadium, LeicesterScott AutreyJohn TitmanLes Collins
17 MayWimborne Road, PooleTony DaveyVáclav VernerMalcolm Simmons
17 MayWhite City Stadium, LondonKai NiemiGordon KennettIla Teromaa
17 MayThe Boulevard, HullIvan MaugerBobby BeatonGraham Drury
18 MayAbbey Stadium, SwindonPeter CollinsJan AnderssonDave Perks
18 MayFoxhall Stadium, IpswichJohn LouisMichael LeeTony Davey
19 MayMonmore Green, WolverhamptonGordon KennettHans NielsenJim McMillan
19 MayKnowle Stadium, BristolJoe OwenTormod LangliReg Wilson
20 MayDudley Wood Stadium, DudleyAlan GrahameJohn DavisBruce Cribb
20 MayThe Shay, HalifaxEric BroadbeltIan CartwrightPhil Collins

Finland Final

Pos.RiderTotal
1Kai Niemi14
2Ilkka Teromaa13
3Rauli Mäkinen12
4Seppo Palomäki12
5Markku Helminen11
6Pekka Paljakka10
7Pekka Hautamäki9
8Timo Kiansten8
9Olli Turkia8
10Veijo Tuoriniemi6
11Veli Pekka Kunelius6
12Ari Koponen3
13Keijo Mylläri3
14Esa Mattila3
15Raimo Posti2
16Jorma Karjalainen0

Norwegian Final

  • 3 riders to Nordic Final

Swedish Final

Pos.RiderTotal
1Anders Michanek14
2Jan Andersson14
3Bernt Persson11
4Tommy Nilsson11
5Lars Ericsson10
6Sören Karlsson10
7Christer Sjösten10
8Bo Wirebrand8
9Bengt Jansson6
10Stefan Salomonsson6
11Hasse Holmqvist5
12Conny Samuelsson5
13Borje Klingberg4
14Gert Carlsson3
15Tommy Pettersson1
16Sören Sjösten1
17Lars-Åke Andersson1

Danish Final

Pos.RiderTotal
1Bent Rasmussen13+3
2Kristian Præstbro13+2
3Hans Nielsen12+3
4Mike Lohmann12+2
5Alf Busk12+1
6Bo Petersen10
7Finn Rune Jensen9
8Knud Ellegaard8
9Klaus Lohmann6
10Kurt Bøgh4
11Steen Mastrup4
12Arne Kruse4
13Erling Rasmussen3
14Gunnar Svendsen3
15Bent Nørregaard-Jensen3
16Jens Kjaer2

Australian Final

Pos.RiderTotal
1John Titman15
2Lloyd Cross13
3Mick McKeon12
4John Boulger11
5Mike Farrell9
6Phil Herne9
7Billy Sanders9
8Robert Maxfield8
9Glenn McDonald7
10Phil Crump7
11Wayne Forrest6
12Tony Boyle5
13Danny Kennedy4
14Ricky Day3
15Phil Bass2
16Stuart Mountford0

New Zealand Final

Pos.RiderHeat ScoresTotal
1Larry Ross3,3,3,3,315
2Barry Briggs2,3,3,2,212
3Mike Fullerton1,3,2,3,312
4Mitch Shirra3,2,E,3,311
5Roger Wright2,3,3,1,211
6Colin Tucker3,2,2,2,211
7Colin Farquharson1,1,3,2,310
8James Moore3,1,0,0,26
9Allan Brown0,0,2,3,16
10Greg Joynt1,2,2,0,05
11Paul Fewinks2,2,0,1,F5
12Max BrownF,0,1,2,14
13Gavin Miller2,1,1,0,04
14Cliff Anderson0,0,1,1,13
15Patrick Pawson1,E,1,1,03
16Kris Berrigan0,1,0,0,12

Fourth round

British semi-finals

Pos.RiderPoints
1Tony Davey12
2Gordon Kennett12
3Dave Jessup11
4John Davis11
5Steve Bastable10
6John Louis10
7Malcolm Simmons10
8Alan Grahame9
9Terry Betts8
10Bob Kilby7
11Trevor Geer6
12Neil Middleditch4
13Mike Lanham4
14Colin Richardson4
15Eric Broadbelt2
16Geoff Bouchard1
Pos.RiderPoints
1Peter Collins15
2Chris Morton13
3Michael Lee13
4Les Collins10
5Reg Wilson10
6Dave Morton9
7Doug Wyer8
8Jim McMillan7
9Phil Collins7
10Bobby Beaton6
11Dave Perks5
12Ian Cartwright5
13Keith White4
14Alan Molyneux4
15Richard Greer3
16Ray Wilson1

American selection

  • No qualifying, the AMA selected two riders to represent the USA in the Intercontinental final.

Australasian Final

Pos.RiderHeat ScoresTotal
1 Mitch Shirra2,2,3,3,313
2 Mick McKeon3,3,2.5,2,111.5
3 John Titman2,3,T,3,311
4 Mike Farrell3,1,1,3,311
5 Mike Fullerton1,3,3,1,210
6 Phil Herne1,2,2,3,210
7 John Boulger3,3,2,T,19
8 Billy Sanders3,T,3,F,39
9 Colin Farquharson0,2,2,2,28
10 Roger Wright1,1,2.5,1,16.5
11 Robert Maxfield1,1,1,2,16
12 Larry Ross2,E,E,2,26
13 James Moore2,1,1,1,05
14 Colin Tucker0,2,1,0,03
15 Allan Brown0,0,0,0,00
16 Lloyd CrossF,-,-,-,-0
R1 Greg Joynt0,0,1,T1
R2 Cliff Anderson0,0,00

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
(2) Ole Olsen 15 3 3 3 3 3 15 1
(7) Bernt Persson 14 3 3 3 3 2 14 2
(9) Finn Thomsen 11 2 2 3 3 1 11 3 3
4 (15) Kai Niemi 11 3 2 2 1 3 11 4 2
5 (4) Ila Teromaa 10 2 3 2 2 1 10 5
6 (8) Tommy Nilsson 10 2 2 2 2 2 10 6
7 (13) Kristian Præstbro 9 1 3 1 1 3 9 7
8 (16) Anders Michanek 8 2 1 2 3 0 8 8
9 (3) Jan Andersson 6 1 0 1 2 2 6 9 3
10 (6) Tom Godal 6 1 1 3 0 1 6 10 2
11 (11) Sören Karlsson 6 3 1 0 0 2 6 11 1
12 (14) Bent Rasmussen 5 0 0 0 2 3 5 12
13 (10) Christer Sjösten 4 0 2 0 1 1 4 13
14 (1) Lars Ericsson 3 0 1 1 1 0 3 14
15 (5) Audun Ove Olsen 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 15
16 (12) Stein Roar Pedersen 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 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

Continental semi-finals

Pos.RiderPoints
1 Hans Wassermann15
2 Jiří Štancl13
3 Marek Cieslak11
4 Boleslaw Proch11
5 Emil Sova10
6 Zdenek Kudrna9
7 Piotr Pyszny9
8 Nikolaj Kornev8
9 Georg Hack8
10 Aleš Dryml Sr.7
11 Jerzy Kochman5
12 Vladimir Paznikov5
13 Karel Vobornik3
14 Petr Kucera2
15 Rudy Muts2
16 Frits Koppe1
Pos.RiderPoints
1 Alois Wiesböck15
2 Egon Müller14
3 Ryszard Fabiszewski12
4 Jan Verner9
5 Francesco Biginato9
6 Istvan Sziraczki9
7 Jerzy Rembas9
8 Petr Ondrašík9
9 Boguslav Nowak8
10 Václav Verner8
11 Andrzej Huszcza5
12 Michail Starostin4
13 Grigory Khlinovsky4
14 Laszlo Meszaros3
15 Jan Hadek1
16 Jiri Jirout1

Fifth round

British 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
(7) Michael Lee 14 3 3 3 3 2 14 1
(5) Dave Jessup 12 2 3 1 3 3 12 2
(16) Malcolm Simmons 11 0 3 3 2 3 11 3
4 (9) Gordon Kennett 10 2 2 2 3 1 10 4 3
5 (1) Steve Bastable 10 3 1 2 1 3 10 5 2
6 (12) Chris Morton 10 E 2 3 2 3 10 6 1
7 (13) Tony Davey 8 3 0 2 3 0 8 7
8 (15) John Davis 8 2 2 2 2 0 8 8
9 (10) Les Collins 7 3 0 1 1 2 7 9
10 (6) Peter Collins 6 1 3 E E 2 6 10
11 (8) Reg Wilson 6 0 0 3 2 1 6 11
12 (2) Doug Wyer 4 1 2 X 1 E 4 12
13 (14) Alan Grahame 4 1 1 0 0 2 4 13
14 (4) Jim McMillan 3 2 1 0 T 0 3 14
15 (11) John Louis 3 1 0 1 0 1 3 15
16 (3) Dave Morton 3 0 1 1 0 1 3 16
R3 (R3) Mick Bell 1 1 1 R3
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
(5) Hans Wassermann 14 3 2 3 3 3 14 1
(9) Jiří Štancl 14 3 3 3 3 2 14 2
(11) Marek Cieślak 11 1 3 3 3 1 11 3
4 (16) Petr Ondrašík 11 3 2 1 2 3 11 4
5 (1) Jan Verner 11 3 1 2 2 3 11 5
6 (7) Jerzy Rembas 9 2 0 3 3 1 9 6
7 (8) Zdeněk Kudrna 9 1 3 2 1 2 9 7
8 (2) Boleslaw Proch 8 2 2 2 2 0 8 8
9 (14) Alois Wiesböck 6 2 3 F 1 0 6 9
10 (4) Francesco Biginato 6 1 1 0 2 2 6 10
11 (10) Janosz Sziracky 5 0 1 2 1 1 5 11
12 (13) Nikolay Kornev 4 1 0 1 0 2 4 12
13 (6) Emil Sova 4 0 0 0 1 3 4 13
14 (3) Ryszard Fabiszewski 4 0 2 1 0 1 4 14
15 (12) Egon Muller 2 2 0 E E - 2 15
16 (15) Piotr Pyszny 2 X 1 1 0 0 2 16
R1 (R1) Bogusław Nowak 0 0 R1
R2 (R2) Georg Hack 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

Intercontinental 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
(3) Ole Olsen 13 2 3 2 3 3 13 1 3
(11) Ivan Mauger 13 3 2 2 3 3 13 2 2
(1) Scott Autrey 11 3 X 3 2 3 11 3 3
4 (16) Ila Teromaa 11 3 3 1 1 3 11 4 2
5 (13) Jan Andersson 11 2 2 3 2 2 11 5 1
6 (9) Anders Michanek 10 2 1 3 3 1 10 6
7 (5) John Titman 10 2 3 1 2 2 10 7
8 (6) Bernt Persson 9 3 3 0 2 1 9 8
9 (2) Kai Niemi 8 1 2 2 1 2 8 9
10 (12) Steve Gresham 7 X 1 3 3 X 7 10
11 (4) Finn Thomsen 5 0 2 2 E 1 5 11
12 (15) Mike Farrell 5 1 1 0 1 2 5 12
13 (10) Mick McKeon 3 1 1 1 0 0 3 13
14 (8) Kristian Præstbro 2 0 0 1 0 1 2 14
15 (7) Mitch Shirra 1 1 F - - - 1 15
16 (14) Tommy Nilsson 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 16
R1 (R1) Bert Rasmussen 0 0 0 0 R1
R2 (R2) Tom Jenssen 0 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

World 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
(15) Ole Olsen 13 3 2 2 3 3 13 1
(13) Gordon Kennett 12 2 3 2 2 3 12 2
(2) Scott Autrey 11 3 2 1 3 2 11 3 3
4 (12) Dave Jessup 11 E 3 3 3 2 11 4 2
5 (9) Jerzy Rembas 11 3 1 3 1 3 11 5 1
6 (1) Malcolm Simmons 10 2 2 2 2 2 10 6
7 (6) Michael Lee 9 3 1 3 2 0 9 7
8 (14) Ivan Mauger 8 F 3 2 0 3 8 8
9 (16) John Titman 7 1 2 F 3 1 7 9
10 (3) Anders Michanek 7 1 3 0 2 1 7 10
11 (4) Ila Teromaa 6 0 1 3 F 2 6 11
12 (11) Jan Verner 5 2 1 1 0 1 5 12
13 (8) Marek Cieślak 5 2 0 1 1 1 5 13
14 (10) Jan Andersson 3 1 0 1 1 0 3 14
15 (7) Jiří Štancl 2 1 0 0 1 0 2 15
16 (5) Petr Ondrašík 0 F 0 0 0 0 0 16
R1 (R1) Steve Bastable 0 0 R1
R2 (R2) Bernt Persson 0 0 R2
R3 (R3) Zdeněk Kudrna 0 0 R3
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 10 July 2021.
  3. "WORLD FINALS 1936-1994" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  4. "Speedway riders, history and results". wwosbackup. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  5. "WORLD INDIVIDUAL FINAL - RIDER INDEX". British Speedway. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  6. "Ole - He's champ". Sunday Mirror. 3 September 1978. Retrieved 10 July 2021 via British Newspaper Archive.
  7. "Timelines take a moment". Speedway Star. 6 August 2022. p. 47.
  8. "1978 World Championship". Metal Speedway. Retrieved 20 January 2024.
  9. "1978 World Championship". Speedway.org. Retrieved 20 January 2024.
  10. Bamford, R. & Shailes, G. (2002). A History of the World Speedway Championship. Stroud: Tempus Publishing. ISBN 0-7524-2402-5
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