Speedway: Sheffield star Jack Holder leads World Championship after first grand prix win in Croatia

Sheffield Tigers number one Jack Holder is tonight leading the Speedway World Championship after winning his first grand prix.

The Australian won the meeting in Donji Kraljevic this evening to put himself two points clear of Jason Doyle, after what was the first meeting of this year’s GP series.

It means he and Chris Holder, also a Sheffield rider, are the first brothers to have both won GPs in the sport.

This evening he beat Jason Doyle, Freddie Lindgren and world champion Bartosz Zmarzlik. It was the same final line up as he raced in his first ever GP final last season, when he looked set to win before the heat was stopped following a fall by another rider, with Lindgren winning the re-run.

Speaking to Eurosport after the race, he described the race as ‘history’.

He said: “I’ve just made history with the Holder family, the first brothers to win - massive monkey off my back.

I’ve been wanting this one for long long.”

Sign up for our free newsletters now

He said his partner was unable to be at the meeting tonight, as she cannot travel at present because she is pregnant with the couple’s child.

He told her in the interview: “That was was for you.”

He added: “It was a pretty technical track out there, There were a few big holes but I was trapping , trapping for fun, logging my laps and got to that chequered flag first.”

Holder had been top in the heats, with 12 points from his five rides, and won his semi final by beating Jason Doyle, Kai Huckenbeck and Dominic Kubera.