DANISH legend Niels-Kristian Iversen predicts a tense but thrilling meeting when some of the world’s best come to Glasgow on Saturday night.
The seven-time national title winner and former World No 3 heads up a star-studded field at the Peugeot Ashfield Stadium in the Grand Prix qualifier.
Iversen is the highest-ranked rider in the event, sitting fifth in this year’s Grand Prix series standings – just seven points off joint leaders Bartosz Zmarzlik and Patryk Dudek.
He told GlasgowTigers.org what fans can expect from the event, as four riders look to qualify for the Grand Prix Challenge – the top three from which will make the 2020 series.
“What does it take [to make the Grand Prix]? You need to be in the first three in the Grand Prix Challenge,” said the four-time World Cup winner.
“But it’s a tough task. You need to have luck on your side when you get to these final meetings and you need to be really sharp and have everything in place.
“It is tough because a lot of riders have hopes to make it through but unfortunately only three riders can.
“From the outside it looks like they’re doing a really good job – I’m looking forward to coming to Glasgow”
“I think it’s going to be a pretty hard meeting – it’s going to be pretty intense. It’s quite a strong line-up for a semi-final – there are some really good riders there. There’s a lot on the line for the boys, so there’s going to be some good racing.”
Iversen, 36, will have to learn the fastest way round the Glasgow track having last raced at Ashfield 16 years ago.
But he’s excited to see the developments that have taken place at the stadium in recent seasons, having heard all about it from others in the sport.
He said: “I was there in 2003 with Newport so it’s many years ago – so I don’t really have any experience with the track there. I need to do a little bit of research before we get there to see what it’s about.
“But we have a short practice in the morning and I’m sure we’ll be able to get dialled in.
“There is a lot of work going on with Glasgow and a lot of positivity in the media from the club. From the outside looking in it looks like they’re doing a really good job. I’m looking forward to coming to Glasgow on Saturday and seeing what it’s all about.”
Iversen looks on track for a fifth career top-eight finish in the 2019 series – which would guarantee him his place in the GPs in 2020 – however, he’s using the qualification process as a safety net.
He revealed: “Before the season started I had to decide whether I wanted to do it or not, and I went down the route of qualification. I did it last year after I was only reserve last year, so I didn’t really know exactly where I was standing.
“I don’t really want to rely on a wild card in case I needed that – I prefer to do things myself – but hopefully I won’t need it and I will be able to qualify on my own from the series. Things have been going pretty decent from the first two rounds.”
You can hear the full interview with Iversen on our Facebook page.
Saturday’s event – also featuring the likes of Robert Lambert, Chris Holder, Bartosz Smektala and Craig Cook – starts at 7pm. Tickets are available here.