The roar of highly-tuned four-stroke racing engines will echo around the picturesque Bisalta Motor Park this coming Saturday (20 July) when the 2024 FIM Flat Track World Championship powered by Anlas, Kineo and HKC Koopmann gets under way at Boves-Cuneo in north-west Italy.
- Boves-Cuneo hosts 2024 FIM Flat Track World Championship opener
- Defending champion Ervin Krajčovič heads world-class line up
- International entry assembled for extended six-round 2024 series
Lying in the shadow of the Italian Alps, the TT circuit with its infield section and jump is a complete contrast to the more conventional oval-style race tracks used in Flat Track and is guaranteed to provide an early test for the world-class field that will assemble for the opening event in this year’s extended six-round series of Finals.
With the sport’s popularity continuing to grow, it is inevitable this will be reflected in the entry list and a total of twenty-three riders on machines from a multitude of different manufacturers are scheduled to start. To underline the series’ global appeal, fourteen countries spread across five continents will be represented on Saturday.
With a solid background in national-level Motocross in his native Czech Republic, the TT track should be an advantage for defending champion Ervin Krajčovič (KTM) who, fans will be delighted to hear, is running a big ‘#1’ on his number plates and racing jersey this season – although last year’s event at Boves saw him finish off the podium for the first time in 2023.
Claiming the third step on the podium in Boves last September was series newcomer Jarred Brook (Husqvarna) and the experienced twenty-six-year-old Australian is back for his second attempt at winning the title, but the multi-time national champion and three-time American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) amateur champion is just one of a large contingent of riders aiming to relieve thirty-three-year-old Krajčovič of his crown
British hopes lie with Tim Neave and Jack Bell, who currently sit first and second in the UK DTRA Flat Track Nationals.
Also on the starting list for Saturday are two former FIM Flat Track World Champions – 2022 winner Gerard Bailo (Zaeta) from Spain and Finland’s Lasse Kurvinen (KTM) who claimed back-to-back titles in 2020 and 2021. While Kurvinen has not contested the championship since his last title-winning campaign, Bailo – who has changed teams for this season – was in the thick of the action in 2023 and narrowly missed out on a successful defence of his crown by just six points.
America’s Sammy’ Halbert also returns for a second attempt at adding an FIM World Championship to his list of accolades that include an AMA Grand National Championship and X-Games gold medal. An incredibly active rider, Halbert won last year’s concluding Final in France and has already competed multiple times this year in the USA, Canada and Italy so should be fully race-ready.
As well as Krajčovič, Bailo and Kurvinen, three other riders in action on Saturday have won FIM medals in the sport with home heroes Matteo Boncinelli (Beta) – who was second in 2022 and third last year – and 2021 runner-up Kevin Corradetti (GASGAS) lining up alongside Germany’s Markus Jell (KTM) who won bronze in 2021.
The Czech Republic is fielding another contender in the shape of Ondřej Svědík (Yamaha) who dominated last year’s first Final in Great Britain, although with so much in-depth talent throughout the field every step on the podium will be up for grabs on Saturday.
After Boves the series travels to Meissen in Germany the following Saturday (27 July), Kings Lynn in Great Britain on 24 August, Morizes in France on September 7 and Pardubice in the Czech Republic on 5 October before concluding at Debrecen in Hungary on 12 October. For more information click here.
Start List
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Preview by FIM – Images by Jesper Veldhuizen
