PIRATES chief Matt Ford has tipped Poole star Maciej Janowski to shine on the Grand Prix stage – whether he qualifies this year or not.

The 22-year-old Pole will line up at his UK home when the GP Challenge comes to Wimborne Road on Saturday, August 24 (6.30pm).

The former world under-21 speedway champion qualified for the final showdown with a sixth-place finish in his semi-final in Lonigo, Italy.

And with the battle for the three available permanent 2014 Grand Prix spots taking place at Poole, Ford believes Janowski, nicknamed Magic, will benefit from his fine form at Wimborne Road this year.

Ford told the Daily Echo: “If the wind blows in the right direction, there is no reason for Maciej not to qualify this year. No one will know the track better than him, he is looking very good at Wimborne Road and there is no doubt he fancies his chances.

“Getting into the tournament is very difficult but if he doesn’t manage it this time, he clearly will be a Grand Prix star of the future. He lives with me and is an incredibly likeable young man. Maciej is just so easy to get on with and great to be around and I’m really hoping that, in his case, nice guys do win.”

Ford added: “He has shown some exceptional form so there is no reason to think he won’t be very competitive.

“The Grand Prix holds a very different type of pressure but you only have to look at Darcy Ward before his injury to see how quality riders can hit the ground running.

“Maciej had a wildcard last year and scored eight points so there is no question he can do well on the biggest stage. His attitude towards riding in Britain is to improve himself. The money the guys earn here is nowhere near what they get on the continent but he just wants to get better.

“As things stand, he is very capable of qualifying straight away and, if he does, I believe he will do himself and his country proud at the highest level.”

Janowski will be joined in the GP Challenge by Poole club-mate Tomas H Jonasson after the Swedish star booked his place from his qualifying round on Wednesday. The Pirates duo will face competition from pre-meeting favourite Niels-Kristian Iversen and former Poole pair Przemyslaw Pawlicki and Krzysztof Kasprzak.

Tickets have been set at £25 for adults, £20 OAPs, £10 11-15 year olds and £5 five-10 year olds, while it is free admission for under- fives. There will be no advanced ticket sales with a pay-on-the-day policy.

GP Challenge line-up: H Andersen, M Zagar, MJ Jensen, M Smolinski, V Milik, M Janowski, J Pavlic, NK Iversen, K Bjerre, A Loktaev, D Nermark, K Kasrpzak, Prz Pawlicki, TH Jonasson, Pi Pawlicki, plus GB wild card.