Oxford Silver Machine trio Nicki Pedersen, Todd Wiltshire and Sebastian Ulamek set out on their bid to become world champion when speedway's Grand Prix series gets under way this weekend.

None of the trio - due to battle it out in the Grand Prix of Europe at the Slaski Stadium in Katowice, Poland on Saturday night - qualified in their own right last year.

Pedersen finished 12th, while Wiltshire and Ulamek were way down the field.

However, GP organisers Benfield Sports International have seeded both Pedersen and Wiltshire through, while Ulamek is the Polish wild card for the meeting.

Wiltshire, yet to win a round of the series, had his best meeting yet when runner-up to Ryan Sullivan in Cardiff last year, while Pedersen has enjoyed success as a meeting winner.

However, after Wiltshire's gallant efforts at Cardiff last year, he failed to make an impact in the rest of the series.

But his form this season suggests better fortune lies ahead for the popular Aussie, who seems to have everything right for tonight.

Pedersen knows what it's like to come out on top in a GP round, and many opponents fear the precocious young Dane's talent.

He is fast, furious, fearless and takes the odd chance that makes an ordinary rider into a champion.

Like Wiltshire, he is having a very good season for the Silver Machine and should be up there challenging throughout.

Ulamek, too, has begun well at Oxford this year, but he was one of the riders involved in the same pile-up as Lukas Dryml at Cardiff last year, and suffered as a result for the rest of the season.