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]

  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.