The 2025 FIM Flat Track World Championship powered by HKC Koopmann, Anlas, Kineo and Blackburst comes to an adrenalin-charged conclusion this coming Saturday (20 September) at Pardubice in the Czech Republic with defending champion Sammy Halbert holding a super-slim four-point lead ahead of 2023 champion Ervin Krajčovič.
- FIM Flat Track World Championship concludes in Czech Republic
- Reigning champion Sammy Halbert defends four-point lead
- Ervin Krajčovič goes for gold on home ground
With passionate home support expected in the Plochodrážní Stadion Svítkov, Czech hero Krajčovič (KTM) is guaranteed to have the fans behind him, but Halbert is hugely experienced and has proved consistently over the last two seasons that he does not need to have the crowd on his side to perform.
The thirty-eight-year-old American star from the Pacific Northwest had said at the start of the year that he wanted to win every round and although his season has not gone entirely to plan, he has won three times from five starts and with every victory has collected the extra bonus point on offer for recording the fastest lap in the Grand Final, something that could prove crucial.
He has also shown that he can win on all styles of circuit including the flat-out fast Scheessel at one-thousand metres in length and last time out on the much more compact three-hundred-and-thirteen-metre track at Vasad so the three-hundred-and-ninety-one-metre circuit at Pardubice should not hold any surprises for him, although he has failed to win there on his two previous visits.
Former Motocross racer Krajčovič, who won in Pardubice last season before losing his title to Halbert by just four points, knows that the gold and silver medal positions are still wide open and that victory on Saturday – coupled with the all-important extra point for the fastest lap – could swing the pendulum back in his favour, even if Halbert finishes second.
Also counting on fervent home support, Krajčovič’s compatriot Ondřej Švédík (KTM) sits third in the points and while, realistically, winning the title is a long shot he could still overturn the nine-point deficit to second to snatch silver.
While the coveted FIM medals are likely to be distributed between the current top three riders, there is still a lot of racing left and Italy’s Daniele Tonelli (TM) will be determined to defend his fourth position in the championship from his compatriot Kevin Corradetti (Yamaha) who was a silver medallist back in 2021 and currently sits just six points adrift in fifth.
A further four points behind, 2022 champion Gerard Baillo (Zaeta) from Spain is in turn just one ahead of Britain’s Tim Neave (GASGAS) who has shown great determination and resilience to fight back from a disaster at round one at Terenzano in Italy at the end of May where a mechanical issue restricted his scoring to just a single point for twentieth.
While no-one outside of the top seven has finished on the podium this season, Argentina’s Santiago Arangio (Yamaha) was a career-best fourth in Scheessel and would love to sign off with a top-three finish and do not discount Czech series newcomer Vít Janoušek (Honda) who has made every Grand Final this season and can also count on passionate support from the home fans.
The action from Pardubice is scheduled to get under way with the first of twelve Heats at 13:00 (local time) on Saturday (20 September).
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