Home hero Lukas Fienhage leapt to the top of the 2025 FIM Long Track World Championship powered by Anlas, Kineo and HKC Koopmann in the Eichenring Scheessel on Sunday, but it was British lion Chris Harris who roared to victory and into contention for the crown on an intense afternoon in northern Germany where two of the pre-race favourites saw their title ambitions suffer heavy blows.

  • 2025 FIM Long Track World Championship passes the halfway point in Germany
  • British hero Chris Harris takes dramatic victory to move into title contention
  • Home favourite Lukas Fienhage takes narrow series lead with one round to go

With only ten points separating the four main title contenders at the start of the day, the third and penultimate round of the series always threatened to be pivotal and this proved to be the case when a collision in the Grand Final between championship leader Zach Wajtknecht and defending champion Martin Smolinski resulted in a major shake-up in the points table.

The British rider stayed upright, but was adjudged to have been at fault and was disqualified – limiting him to a score of thirteen points for fifth – while Smolinski made the restart after falling heavily, but was in no shape to contend for the win and cruised around to pick up the fifteen points on offer for fourth, a score that leaves him eight points behind his compatriot Fienhage with one round remaining.

With the weather overcast and rain threatening for much of the programme, Wajtknecht opened his account with victory in the first Heat ahead of Dave Meijerink from the Netherlands. Harris’ day did not start well when he could only manage third behind Finland’s Tero Aarnio and Germany’s Jörg Tebbe before the first block was completed with a victory for British veteran Andrew Appleton from Smolinski and Fienhage.

In the second block Wajtknecht defeated Appleton and Smolinski beat Harris with Fienhage finding his form to lead home young Dutch racer Mika Meijer.

Harris claimed his first win of the afternoon in his third Heat and Smolinski then led Wajtknecht across the line to tie the 2024 bronze medallist at the top while Fienhage kept himself firmly in contention with his second win of the programme ahead of his compatriot Stephan Katt.

With two blocks of racing left to decide the three automatic qualifying positions for the Grand Final, Smolinski – who won at Scheessel last season on his way to a second consecutive title and his third in total – staked his claim with victory from Aarnio and Harris. Fienhage then defeated Wajtknecht before Appleton took his second win of the afternoon ahead of Meijerink to set up a tense final block.

Victory from Aarnio assured Fienhage of an automatic start in the Grand Final and he was joined by Wajtknecht who won from Meijerink, but Smolinski withdrew with a mechanical problem leaving the reigning champion waiting on the result of the fifteenth and final Heat to see if he would progress directly.

Harris already knew he was heading to the Last Chance Heat, but he improved his choice of gate pick with a win from Appleton whose second-placed finish left him tied with Smolinski and Harris and it was Smolinski who got the decision on count-back.

Rocketing away from the tapes in the Last Chance Heat, Harris – who was second at Scheessel last season – dominated as Appleton fought off a determined challenge from Meijerink to secure the final qualifying position.

When the tapes went up on the Grand Final, Fienhage held the early lead before Wajtknecht and Smolinski collided on the opening lap and the red lights went on. With Wajtknecht disqualified and Smolinski battered and bruised, Harris nailed a dream start from his outside gate and never looked back as he raced to his first win in over two years with Fienhage taking second – and the championship lead – ahead of Appleton and Smolinski.

The result means that with just the final round at Roden in the Netherlands on 21 September left on the calendar, Fienhage – who was champion in 2020 – holds a two-point lead over Wajtknecht with Harris a further two behind in third, four ahead of Smolinski.