1981 Individual Speedway World Championship

The 1981 Individual Speedway World Championship was the last of a record 26 times that London's world famous Wembley Stadium hosted the World Final. It also marked the final time that the stadium would be used for any Motorcycle speedway. In future years when the final was held in England, it would be held at the Odsal Stadium in Bradford until the advent of the Speedway Grand Prix series in 1995. The 1981 Final was held before a reported crowd of 92,500, just shy of the Wembley record of 95,000 set at the 1938 World Final.

1981 Individual Speedway World Championship
Previous: 1980 Next: 1982

Bruce Penhall became the first American to win the World Championship since Jack Milne in 1937. As a past World Championship winner at Wembley, the 74-year-old Milne was a special guest at the event and saw Penhall end America's 44 year Individual World Championship drought. Though he remained undefeated until his last ride when he only needed to finish 3rd to win the Championship (he finished that race in second behind his rival Kenny Carter), Penhall was forced to work hard for his maiden World Championship. In both Heat 7 and Heat 14 he was second for over 3½ laps behind Ole Olsen and Tommy Knudsen respectively before passing both in the run to the line. Olsen would defeat Knudsen in a runoff for second and third places after both finished on 12 points. The triple World Champion gaining some revenge on his younger countryman after Knudsen had defeated Olsen in the first heat of the meeting.

In Heat 6, Denmark's future triple World Champion Erik Gundersen set the 4 lap record of 66.8 seconds for the 345 metres (377 yards) long track when he defeated eventual 3rd placed rider Tommy Knudsen (Denmark), Jiří Štancl (Czechoslovakia) and Zenon Plech (Poland). As this was the final speedway meeting at Wembley it will forever be the track record.

New Zealand Qualification
DateVenueWinnerRunner-up3rd place
South Island Final
January 19 Christchurch Larry Ross Tony Briggs Ivan Mauger
New Zealand Final
February 6 Napier Ivan Mauger Mitch Shirra Larry Ross

New Zealand Final
  • 6 February 1981
  • Napier
  • First 8 to Austral-Asian Final
Pos.RiderHeat ScoresTotal
1 Ivan Mauger3,3,3,3,315
2 Mitch Shirra3,3,3,3,214
3 Larry Ross3,3,2,2,313
4 Wayne Brown1,3,3,3,111
5 Mike Fullerton2,2,2,1,310
6 David Bargh3,2,1,2,210
7 Tony Briggs2,2,2,2,19
8 Greame Beardsley1,1,3,2,18
9 John Goodall0,1,1,3,38
10 Mark Dekok2,1,2,0,05
11 Gavin Rhodes2,1,1,1,05
12 Greg Joynt0,2,1,0,25
13 Max Brown1,0,0,0,23
14 Colin Farquharson0,0,0,1,12
15 Alan Crosbie0,0,0,1,01
16 Patrick Pawson1,0,0,0,-1
R1 Bruce Elvey00
R2 Kym Maugerns0

Australian Qualification
DateVenueWinnerRunner-up3rd place
Southern Zone Final
January 16 Sydney Phil Crump John Boulger Mick McKeon
Northern Zone Final
January 24 Liverpool Billy Sanders Phil Herne John Titman
Australian Final
February 14 Brisbane Billy Sanders Phil Crump John Titman

Australian Final
  • February 14, 1981
  • Brisbane
  • First 8 to Austral-Asian Final
Pos.RiderHeat ScoresTotal
1 Billy Sanders14
2 Phil Crump12
3 John Titman10
4 Danny Kennedy10
5 Phil Herne9
6 Gary Guglielmi8
7 Steve Regeling8
8 Mick McKeon8
9 John Boulger7
10 Robert Maxfield7
11 Steve Koppe7
12 Neil Coddington7
13 Tim Nunan6
14 Bob Chitchcock3
15 Glenn McDonald2
16 Lou Sansom2
R1 Mark williams
R2 Dave Mills

British Qualification
DateVenueWinnerRunner-up3rd place
Preliminary Round
7 April Weymouth Neil Middleditch Simon Wigg Kevin Smith
10 April Peterborough Louis Carr Kevin Hawkins Nicky Allott
12 April Rye House Keith White Melvyn Taylor Bob Garrad
12 April Boston Steve Lomas David Gagen Eric Broadbelt
14 April Crayford Barry Thomas Ian Gledhill Dave Morton
Quarter-Final
27 April Newcastle Eric Broadbelt Kevin Hawkins Neil Middleditch
Semi-Finals
13 May Poole Dave Jessup Steve Bastable Gordon Kennett
14 May Sheffield Les Collins Chris Morton Kenny Carter
Final
3 June Coventry Steve Bastable Kenny Carter John Louis result

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
(3) Steve Bastable 13 2 3 3 3 2 13 1 3
(2) Kenny Carter 13 3 2 3 2 3 13 2 2
(5) John Louis 13 3 3 2 2 3 13 3 1
4 (4) Les Collins 12 1 3 3 3 2 12 4
5 (10) Chris Morton 10 3 3 2 1 1 10 5
6 (6) Dave Jessup 9 2 1 1 2 3 9 6
7 (16) Michael Lee 8 3 1 3 0 1 8 7
8 (15) Ian Cartwright 7 2 0 1 1 3 7 8
9 (13) Malcolm Simmons 6 0 2 1 3 0 6 9 3
10 (11) Eric Broadbelt 6 0 2 2 1 1 6 10 2
11 (9) Phil Collins 6 2 0 2 0 2 6 11 1
12 (7) Melvyn Taylor 5 1 1 0 3 0 5 12
13 (1) John Davis 5 - 1 0 2 2 5 13
14 (12) Gordon Kennett 5 1 2 0 1 1 5 14
15 (14) Kevin Smith 2 1 0 1 0 0 2 15
16 (8) Kevin Jolly 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 16
R1 (R1) Keith Wright 0 0 0 R1
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

Swedish Qualification
DateVenueWinnerRunner-up3rd place
Semi-Finals
3 May Motala Tommy Nilsson Tommy Johansson Hans Danielsson
8 May Mariestad Anders Michanek Bernt Persson Karl Eric Claesson
17 May Gislaved Anders Michanek Tommy Nilsson Hans Danielsson

Intercontinental Round
DateVenueWinnerRunner-up3rd place
Austral-Asian Final
28 February SydneyIvan MaugerDanny KennedyLarry Ross
Norwegian Final
26 April Elgane Rolf Gramstad Audun Ove Olsen Jorn Haufvalstad
Danish Final
10 May Fjelsted Ole Olsen Bo Petersen Erik Gundersen
American Final
30 May Los Angeles Bruce Penhall Dennis Sigalos Kelly Moran
Nordic Final
5 June Norrköping Tommy Knudsen Hans Nielsen Ole Olsen
Overseas Final
2 July White City Dave Jessup Chris Morton Bruce Penhall
Intercontinental Final
25 July Vojens Bruce Penhall Erik Gundersen Hans Nielsen

Australasian Final
Pos.RiderTotal
1 Ivan Mauger15
2 Danny Kennedy11+3
3 Larry Ross11+2
4 Phil Herne11+1
5 Billy Sanders10+3
6 Phil Crump10+2
7 Gary Guglielmi9
8 Mitch Shirra8
9 John Titman7
10 Mick McKeon7
11 Tony Briggs6
12 Wayne Brown5
13 David Bargh2
14 Steve Regeling2
15 Mike Fullerton1
16 Graeme Beardsley1
17 Robert Maxfield (RES)1

Norwegian Final
  • April 26, 1981
  • Elgane
  • First 2 to Nordic final
Pos.RiderTotal
1 Rolf Gramstad15
2 Audun Ove Olsen13
3 Jorn Haufvalstad12
4 Trodd Skretting11
5 Dag Haaland10
6 Ingve Madland9
7 Terje Tollefsen7
8 Kurt Ueland7
9 Geir Aasland7
10 Roy Otto6
11 Asgeir Bjerga6
12 Dagfin Jorgensen5
13 Sigvart Pedersen5
14 Kjell Gimre5
15 Rolf Havirstad2
16 Oddmund Bye0

Danish Final
  • May 10, 1981
  • Fredericia
  • First 6 to Scandinavian final
Pos.RiderTotal
1 Ole Olsen15
2 Bo Petersen13
3 Erik Gundersen12+3
4 Tommy Knudsen12+2
5 Hans Nielsen12+1
6 Jens Henry Nielsen8+3
7 Finn Thomsen8+2
8 Preben Eriksen8+1
9 Finn Rune Jensen7
10 Michael Lochmann7
11 Bent Rasmussen5
12 Steen Mastrup5
13 Hans Ove Christiansen4
14 Bent Juul Larsen3
15 Svend Lund0
16 Klaus Lohman0
R1 Finn Lundahl1

American 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
(1) Bruce Penhall 15 3 3 3 3 3 15 1
(9) Dennis Sigalos 13 3 1 3 3 3 13 2 3
(3) Kelly Moran 13 2 3 2 3 3 13 3 2
4 (5) Scott Autrey 10 2 0 3 2 3 10 4 3
5 (16) Shawn Moran 10 3 3 2 1 1 10 5 2
6 (13) Alan Christian 10 1 2 3 3 1 10 6 1
7 (15) Denny Pyeatt 10 2 2 2 2 2 10 7 0
8 (2) Mike Faria 8 0 3 1 2 2 8 8
9 (8) Bobby Schwartz 7 3 2 1 0 1 7 9
10 (11) Steve Gresham 7 2 1 1 1 2 7 10
11 (6) David De Temple 6 1 2 0 1 2 6 11
12 (4) Brad Oxley 4 1 1 2 0 0 4 12
13 (14) Keith Chrisco 4 0 1 0 2 1 4 13
14 (10) Steve Columbo 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 14
15 (12) Jefrey Tomlin 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 15
16 (7) Dubb Ferrell 0 0 F - - - 0 16
R1 (R1) Bobby McLain 1 1 0 1 R1
R2 (R2) Dan McConnell 1 1 1 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

Nordic Final
  • June 2, 1981
  • Norrköping, Vargarna Speedway
  • First 6 to Intercontinental final plus 1 reserve
Pos.RiderHeat ScoresTotal
1 Tommy Knudsen3,3,3,3,315
2 Hans Nielsen2,3,3,2,313
3 Ole Olsen2,3,2,3,212
4 Preben Eriksen3,2,2,2,312
5 Jan Andersson3,2,1,3,211
6 Erik Gundersen2,1,3,3,110+3
7 Bo Petersen3,3,0,2,210+ns
8 Kai Niemi1,1,1,2,38
9 Ari KoponenE,0,2,1,25
10 Tommy Nilsson1,1,2,1,05
11 Hans Danielsson1,2,0,1,15
12 Audun Ove Olsen1,1,1,1,04
13 Rolf GramstadE,2,1,0,14
14 Bernt Persson0,F,3,0,-3
15 Anders Michanek2,0,-,-,-2
16 Pekka HautamäkiF,0,0,0,11
17 Finn Thomsen (Res)0,00
18 Bo Wirebrand (Res)0,00

Overseas 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
(14) Dave Jessup 13 3 3 3 3 1 13 1
(7) Chris Morton 11 2 1 3 2 3 11 2
(9) Bruce Penhall 10 3 2 2 3 X 10 3 3
4 (13) Kelly Moran 10 1 3 1 2 3 10 4 2
5 (15) Dennis Sigalos 10 2 2 3 1 2 10 5 1
6 (11) Larry Ross 9 2 3 3 1 0 9 6
7 (10) John Louis 9 0 1 2 3 3 9 7
8 (4) Michael Lee 9 2 2 0 2 3 9 8
9 (16) Kenny Carter 8 0 3 1 2 2 8 9
10 (5) Ivan Mauger 8 3 1 1 1 2 8 10
11 (1) Les Collins 7 3 0 2 1 1 7 11
12 (8) Steve Bastable 6 1 1 1 3 0 6 12
13 (6) Ian Cartwright 4 0 2 0 0 2 4 13
14 (2) Scott Autrey 4 1 0 2 0 1 4 14
15 (12) Danny Kennedy 2 1 0 0 0 1 2 15
16 (3) Phil Herne 0 0 0 0 0 E 0 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

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
(14) Bruce Penhall 15 3 3 3 3 3 15 1
(10) Erik Gundersen 12 3 2 3 1 3 12 2
(4) Hans Nielsen 11 3 2 2 2 2 11 3 3
4 (8) Kenny Carter 11 3 1 2 3 2 11 4 2
5 (16) Dave Jessup 10 1 3 3 0 3 10 5
6 (15) Tommy Knudsen 9 2 1 2 3 1 9 6
7 (3) Michael Lee 8 1 3 1 3 F 8 7
8 (5) Jan Andersson 8 1 1 3 2 1 8 8
9 (11) Chris Morton 8 2 2 2 2 0 8 9
10 (12) Larry Ross 7 1 0 1 2 3 7 10
11 (2) Ole Olsen 6 2 1 0 1 2 6 11
12 (13) Preben Eriksen 5 0 2 1 F 2 5 12
13 (9) Ivan Mauger 4 0 3 0 1 0 4 13
14 (7) John Louis 4 2 0 0 1 1 4 14
15 (6) Dennis Sigalos 1 0 0 1 0 F 1 15
16 (1) Kelly Moran 0 F 0 0 E 0 0 16
R1 (R1) Bo Petersen 0 0 R1
R2 (R2) Les Collins 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

Continental Round
DateVenueWinnerRunner-up3rd place
Preliminary Round
25 April Lendava Herbert Szerecz Alois Wiesböck Mariusz Okoniewski
26 April Krumbach Ferenc Farkaš Jan Verner Henny Kroeze
26 April Shumen Henryk Olszak Ladislav Hradecky Andrzej Huszcza
26 April Žarnovica Waldemar Bacik Andreas Niedemaier Kurt Prastbo
Quarter-Finals
10 May Lonigo Henny Kroeze Georg Hack Aleš Dryml Sr.
10 May Bopfingen Egon Muller Zenon Plech Valery Gordeev
10 May Miskolc Roman Jankowski Zdeněk Kudrna Zoltan Adorjan
10 May Wiener Neustadt Jerzy Rembas Andrzej Huszcza Mikhail Starostin
Semi-Finals
13 June Landshut Zenon Plech Georg Hack Milan Špinka
14 June Leszno Edward Jancarz Jerzy Rembas Zdeněk Kudrna
Final
25 July Prague Egon Muller Aleš Dryml Sr. Edward Jancarz

Continental Final
  • July 25, 1981
  • Prague, Marketa Stadium
  • First 5 to World final plus 1 reserve
Pos.RiderHeat ScoresTotal
1 Egon Müller3,3,3,3,X12+2+3
2 Aleš Dryml Sr.3,0,3,3,312+3+2
3 Edward Jancarz3,2,2,2,312+2+1
4 Jiří Štancl2,3,2,3,212+2+0
5 Zenon Plech2,3,3,3,112+E+E
6 Henryk Olszak2,1,2,1,39+3
7 Jan Verner0,2,3,2,29+2
8 Marek Kepa3,1,1,2,18
9 Roman Jankowski1,3,1,1,06
10 Zdeněk Kudrna1,1,0,1,36
11 Milan Špinka0,2,2,2,-6
12 Petr Kucera2,0,X,1,25
13 Waldemar Bacik0,1,1,0,13
14 Marek Towalski0,2,0,0,02
15 Georg Hack1,X,F,0,-1
16 Valerij Gordeev1,0,0,0,01
R1 Petr Ondrašík0,22
R2 Antonín Kasper, Jr.11

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
1 (11) Bruce Penhall 14 3 3 3 3 2 14 1
2 (3) Ole Olsen 12+3 2 2 3 2 3 12 2
3 (2) Tommy Knudsen 12+2 3 2 2 2 3 12 3
4 (10) Erik Gundersen 11 2 3 0 3 3 11 4
5 (5) Kenny Carter 10 3 2 3 e 3 11 5
6 (12) Jan Andersson 9 1 2 1 3 2 9 6
7 (7) Egon Müller 9 1 1 3 2 2 9 7
8 (16) Dave Jessup 7 3 3 e e 1 7 8
9 (15) Hans Nielsen 6 2 0 0 2 2 6 9
10 (9) Michael Lee 5 0 3 2 0 f 5 10
11 (8) Chris Morton 5 2 1 1 1 0 5 11
12 (1) Edward Jancarz 5 1 1 1 1 1 5 12
13 (4) Larry Ross 4 0 t 1 3 0 4 13
14 (13) Aleš Dryml Sr. 3 0 0 2 0 1 3 14
15 (6) Zenon Plech 3 f 0 2 1 0 3 15
16 (14) Jiří Štancl 0 1 1 0 0 1 3 16
Res (17) Henryk Olszak 0 0 0 Res
Res (18) Preben Eriksen 0 0 Res
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

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. Bamford, R. & Shailes, G. (2002). A History of the World Speedway Championship. Stroud: Tempus Publishing. ISBN 0-7524-2402-5
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