[4][5] Defending champion Hans Nielsen was set to win his fifth world crown with a nine-point lead going into the last of the six events at Vojens.

[6] During 1996 the initial SGP scoring system used in 1995 remained in place.

Each rider raced every other in the meeting with the top 4 qualifying for a final - the points for all other riders determined their finishing position in the meeting and therefore their championship Grand Prix points.

The 1996 season had 17 permanent riders and one wild card at each event.

The permanent riders are highlighted in the results table below.