ZENGOTA, Grzegorz
DATE OF BIRTH: 29 August 1988, Zielona Góra, Poland.
BRITISH CAREER: (2010-11) Swindon.
MAJOR HONOURS: World Under-21 Team Cup winner: 2008, 2009.
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 5.65 (EL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: ‘Zengi’, as he was nicknamed, had been on the radar for a British berth for sometime, but it was Swindon who claimed his cherished signature for a 2010 start in the UK; the Wiltshire club revealing the news on 14 December after the rider has spent a weekend visiting the area and weighing up the Blunsdon raceway. The Pole first represented his hometown club, Zielona Góra, in 2004 and has been on their books ever since.

He has also raced abroad for Avesta (Sweden) in 2007, Berlin (Germany) in 2007 and Holsted (Denmark) in 2008. He grabbed headline coverage in both 2008 and 2009, when he helped Poland to victory in the World Under-21 Team Cup, with scores of 8 and 13 points, respectively, in the finals at Holsted and Gorzów.

The 2009 campaign also saw the fast-rising youngster net an 8-point tally to finish seventh in the World Under-21 Championship at Goričan, Croatia, whilst he took victory in the prestigious Polish Silver Helmet, courtesy of a 14-point haul at Częstochowa.

He was to produce a number of eye-catching performances for Swindon, as he completed the whole season in the main body of the side for an average of 6.52, having netted 201 points from thirty-one meetings. These were excellent returns in his first year of UK racing, especially considering he didn’t have the benefit of a spell at reserve.

Emphasising that, his best return at home was a score of 11+2 points from five rides versus Peterborough in a Knock-Out Cup tie on 10 June, whilst away he scorched to 18 points from six outings in the return cup fixture at the Panthers’ East of England Showground on 17 September, when his tally was enhanced by 6 points from a tactical outing in the penultimate heat.

On 16 December, at a Fans’ Forum at the Robins’ Abbey Stadium, Swindon revealed that Zengota was likely to be a starter in the line-up for 2011, with team boss Ronnie Russell stating that it was just a case of dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s.

It was confirmed by the club on 2 February that the Pole was definitely in the side, with co-promoter Gary Patchett explaining that the delay had been due to the unique situation surrounding Coventry and Peterborough, which had meant that there had been very little business whilst they awaited some clarification on that matter.

However, on 9 March, Swindon’s team plans were hit by the news that Zengota had suffered a triple break to his right femur whilst practicing on his own at Gniezno in his homeland earlier that day. The injured Robin subsequently underwent a 4-hour operation to re-set the break in a hospital near Poznań on 11 March. In the meantime, the club’s management looked at the implications of the body-blow and considered their options regarding the team.

Initially, the rider replacement facility was employed as the club sought to find another rider to plug the gap but, on 17 April, the Robins’ management announced the double signing of Nicolai Klindt and fellow Dane Jesper B. Monberg; the incoming duo took the place of Zengota and his Polish compatriot, Tomasz Chrzanowski, who had struggled for points in the opening matches of the campaign.

Finally, on 25 August, Swindon announced that Zengota would return to their line-up for the remainder of the campaign. The rider came in for fellow countryman Maciek Janowski after club bosses held talks with ‘Magic’ about his schedule for the rest of the season.

FIM Speedway Grand Prix Record:
Grand Prix ridden: 1 – 150th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix points: 0 – n/a
Grand Prix races: 1 – 150th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix race wins: 0 – n/a
Grand Prix wins: 0 – n/a      
Grand Prix finals: 0 – n/a