Greenhill's rising speedway star, Sonny Spurgin, is riding high after coming fourth at the SGP4 (FIM Speedway Youth World Cup) in Sweden.
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SGP4 is a new youth category in speedway that serves as an entry-level platform for future speedway champions.
Racing against the best riders in the world in the 11-13 division, Sonny's dad, Tim Spurgin, said the 12-year-old had a challenging but rewarding experience.
Starting from the outside (gate four) due to drawing two yellow gates, Sonny had the added challenge of racing four of his five races in heat four, known for its difficult track conditions as the last race in each series.
"That had a bit of an impact on our overall result," Tim said.
Undeterred, Sonny rolled up his sleeves and went to work, finishing the day with a series of strong performances: second, third, first, a fall, and first, ending the day with nine points and missing the podium by just one point.
"If everything had gone in our favour, Sonny would have finished second in the world and just one point off being world champion, but it didn't go that way," Tim said.
Tim said Sonny had "mixed emotions" after the meeting.
"He's a little bit disappointed because he knows what could've been, but it's also a huge achievement to have everything stacked against him and still finish fourth."
Tim said a highlight for Sonny at the world titles was when he was selected to present the winning trophy to Martin Vaculik, the 2024 victor of the SGP4.
"He was thrilled for the opportunity. They called him over and asked if he'd like to present the trophy, and he was just ecstatic."
The world championships experience included a trip to the SGP4 academy in Prague, where he spent two days riding and had the opportunity to meet three-time speedway world champion Greg Hancock and six-time speedway world champion Tony Rickardsson.
"To work with those guys and to be out on the track with them was pretty special for Sonny. It was amazing and a bit mind-blowing for him to have that experience."
Looking ahead, Sonny is back on the bike in Brisbane this weekend for the second round of the Darcy Ward Invitational. He is also gearing up for the Queensland state titles in August and the Australian titles in September.
Tim said Sonny is grateful for the support from his sponsors, the community, and the SGP and FIM for organising the event.
