BIG EVENT LATESTDEFENDING Champion Scott Nicholls insists his qualification scare will be out of his mind when he looks to extend his remarkable British Final winning run at Wolverhampton on May 13.Nicholls secured a record-breaking seventh title at Monmore Green last season, but only edged through his recent semi-final at Sheffield with a win in his last race.The Coventry skipper and former team-mate Chris Harris, with three British titles of his own, have dominated the event over the last decade, but the in-form Tai Woffinden is set to go into this years meeting as the strong favourite.Swindons Edward Kennettwho has reached the decisive final race on five occasions, finishing second twicehas also been in fine form this season, along with Birminghams Danny King.And rising stars who have qualified for the event include Richie Worrall, Ashley Birks, Josh Auty and Craig Cookwho gave a terrific performance on his first appearance in the meeting last season.Nicholls made his British Final debut way back in 1997 so has maximum experience to call upon, and he knows everyone starts equal on the big night.He said: I had one of those nights really (at Sheffield). It would have been nice to have scored a few more points, that would have made life a bit easier, but I came just to qualify and thats what I did. We all start afresh at Wolverhampton.So far this season it has been so stop-start, you have a little run of meetings and get some track-time, and then its a week off. This early in the season you cant be having weeks off, you dont feel comfortable.It would be nice to get a few more meetings under my belt, and Ive got a busier run before the British Final so it would be nice to get my confidence up and feel good on the bike.BRITISH FINAL LINE-UP: Craig Cook (Belle Vue/Edinburgh), Olly Allen (Coventry/Rye House), Richie Worrall (Kings Lynn/Newcastle), Chris Schramm (Plymouth), Stuart Robson (Coventry/Newcastle), Tai Woffinden (Wolverhampton), Scott Nicholls (Coventry), Ben Barker (Birmingham/Ipswich), James Wright (Glasgow), Ashley Birks (Swindon/Scunthorpe), Chris Harris (Birmingham), Danny King (Birmingham), Richard Hall (Sheffield), Josh Auty (Birmingham/Scunthorpe), Edward Kennett (Swindon), Simon Stead (Kings Lynn/Sheffield). Reserves: Joe Haines (Sheffield), Kyle Howarth (Poole/Workington).
*THE draw has been made for the 2013 Premier League Pairs at Somerset.The meeting takes place on Friday May 31, the day before the British Grand Prix at Cardiff, taking its regular position on the calendar as it always attracts a bumper attendance.SpeedwayGB Events co-ordinator David Hoggart said: The Premier League Pairs has become firmly established as the gateway to Cardiff, and it is always a tremendous meeting on a great racetrack. It is a shame that the formula does not allow every club to compete as Premier League fans are witnessing some excellent racing right now. I must commiserate with Rye House, Redcar and Newcastle, but add that their supporters will be most welcome at the Oak Tree Arena to enjoy the famous Somerset hospitality.GROUP A: Somerset, Glasgow, Ipswich, Scunthorpe, Berwick.GROUP B: Edinburgh, Workington, Plymouth, Sheffield, Leicester.
SPEEDWAYGB EVENTS SERIES 2013BRITISH UNDER-21 FINAL: ROBERT BRANFORDBRITISH FINAL: Wolverhampton, May 13PREMIER LEAGUE PAIRS: Somerset, May 31PREMIER LEAGUE FOURS: Peterborough, July 14PREMIER LEAGUE RIDERS CHAMPIONSHIP: Sheffield, Sept 22ELITE LEAGUE RIDERS CHAMPIONSHIP: Swindon, Oct 12NATIONAL LEAGUE MAJOR EVENTS:NATIONAL LEAGUE PAIRS: Mildenhall, June 30NATIONAL LEAGUE FOURS: Stoke, August 18NATIONAL LEAGUE RIDERS CHAMPIONSHIP: Rye House, Sept 21BRITISH SPEEDWAY FIM EVENT DATES:WORLD UNDER-21 CHAMPIONSHIP Round 3: Berwick, August 10GRAND PRIX CHALLENGE: Poole, August 24
ELITE LEAGUE LATEST
BELLE VUE No.1 Matej Zagar is targeting a long-term stay with the Aces after making a fine start to his career with the club.Zagar told Speedway Star: I am definitely thinking of being No.1 in the new stadium next year. Chris Morton told me when they had got permission to go ahead with it, and that was fabulous news.I am looking forward to riding in it and I would commit myself to ride for the Aces even if there wasnt a new stadium. I want to be at Belle Vue for longer than one season.BIRMINGHAM boss Phil Morris wants to see his side build some momentum having been restricted to just four Elite League fixtures so far this season.Morris told the Birmingham Mail: We're playing catch-up compared to other teams which can be good and bad. Were doing quite well but we're behind in points. Its in our own hands with matches in hand, and weve got to pull some points back.We had a behind closed doors practice session on Wednesday which I think is the first time that's ever happened. Bomber (Chris Harris) was probably the instigator of it because he wanted some track time, so hopefully he'll have ironed out some issues he's had.COVENTRY were relieved to finally secure their first win of the season at Brandon on Monday with an impressive performance to run up a 57-33 scoreline against Lakeside.Captain Scott Nicholls said: Its well overdue, and hopefully its the turning point. Weve got a couple more meetings this week, so hopefully we can take the form and the confidence from here into Friday.It was great to get the reception from the crowd, and full credit to Mick (Horton). He got the boys together today and it was nice to get the support from him, to reassure us that he was behind us. He put the free event on earlier for a bit of fun for the kids, so full credit to him and hopefully thats got the fans behind us again.EASTBOURNE boss Trevor Geer said an improved showing from Adam Shields was a bright spot to take from a 39-53 defeat at Poole last week.Geer told the Brighton Argus: It was good to see Adam getting stuck in and fighting for every point.He looked like he was up for it, which is just what he needed.KINGS LYNN boss Rob Lyon viewed the Stars point at Swindon as very much a point gained as they currently race meetings below full-strength due to injuries.Lyon told lovespeedway24.co.uk: Im very pleased with the point we got at Swindon. We were down and out after ten heats, but the boys got it together and took it to them.It was a miraculous achievement to get a point, especially after we lost Rory (Schlein) and had two riders not scoring, while operating rider-replacement, so we effectively only had three men left.LAKESIDE skipper Davey Watt says his side need more performances such as in their last home outing when they gained maximum points against Kings Lynn, rather than recent away displays.Watt told Speedway Star: We need to perform like that week in and week out, and with a full-strength side thats the level of performance I expect.If we do that, we can realistically target a top four place, which is what we should expect to achieve. The team is a good team and I think we deserve to be around the top, we have a good bunch of guys so why not?PETERBOROUGH boss Jan Staechmann believes the signing of Nicolai Klindt to replace Norbert Kosciuch can prove to be a positive one for both rider and club.Staechmann said: I have worked closely with him for many years and know how he operates, so I have every faith in him.He is a passionate rider - a typical Dane in terms of having immaculate equipment - and he is completely dedicated to his sport and adheres to a strict diet and fitness regime. Hes also a good team man and will fit in perfectly with the team spirit of the Panthers.POOLE star Dennis Anderssons 28-day spell back with the club as cover for Robert Miskowiak expires this week, with the Pirates heading into a busy May programme without No.1 Darcy Ward due to a fractured shoulder-blade.Promoter Matt Ford said: It has been tough for Dennis coming back from such a serious injury but I know that he has been determined to try and prove himself to the Poole fans and I am sure that will be the same for what will be his final home performance.We saw last week what Dawid (Stachyra) is capable of and while you cannot expect maximums from him every week the team will need to be be contributing from all quarters once again if we are to start catching the leading pack.SWINDON youngster Nick Morris is set for a spell on the sidelines after suffering a broken collarbone in a crash at Workington on Monday.Robins boss Alun Rossiter said: Nick has broken the collarbone in two places, and its looking like he will have to have three to four weeks out. Its a blow for us, although fortunately our schedule this month is not especially heavy and we have a fortnights break anyway after the match against Belle Vue on Thursday.However, we will monitor Nick closely and we will keep an eye on the options just in case he is ruled out for longer than first feared.WOLVERHAMPTON skipper Freddie Lindgren admits the stunning start to the season for the Monmore club is providing him with consolation after a tough opening to his own Grand Prix campaign.Lindgren said: I was happy with my performance (on Monday) and things are going well for me in England this year. I've been a bit down after the GP but it was good to come back like I did.I had a good meeting in Poland on Sunday and my Polish team, Leszno, are also doing really well. I'm happy my league racing is going well, and that's a bit of a consolation for the fact the GP's have started badly for me.PREMIER LEAGUE LATEST
BERWICK boss Ian Rae has expressed concern over the Bandits recent form, with back to back defeats against Workington making for an unhappy Bank Holiday for the Border club.Rae said: The frustrating thing is we know we are a far better side capable of getting far better results, and despite our side fighting well, these scores should not be happening, but they are. We have got to get to the bottom of things rapidly and make sure we dont lose too much ground in the Premier League before too many more matches go by lost.EDINBURGH No.1 Craig Cook scored a faultless 18-point maximum to help his depleted side to a point from their Bank Holiday Monday fixture at Scunthorpe, despite the withdrawal of fellow heat-leader Claus Vissing.Cook told the Scotsman: When we went 17 points behind we looked down and out to be truthful, but we pulled it back to get a match point and we can only be happy with that. The fallers we had at the start of the meeting screwed us up really, but these things happen in speedway.GLASGOW co-promoter Colin Hamilton took the positives from the Bank Holiday weekend, focusing on the entertainment on show in a thrilling 46-44 home win over Newcastle although the Diamonds gained revenge with a 60-30 victory in the return fixture.Hamilton said: Despite the weather and the hiccups weve had, were quite happy with the way things are going. Were really delighted with the standard of racing at Ashfield and the value for money that we feel its giving to the fans now.IPSWICH boss Pete Simmons hailed No.1 Ben Barker for a stunning Heat 10 ride to win Heat 10 of the home match with Leicester and set the Witches on their way to victory.Simmons told lovespeedway24.co.uk: Ben was involved in the race of the season, having been in last place for the first three laps, and that got the crowd to their feet which was great to see. That was the turning point. We had made mistakes previously but once the riders saw what Ben could do, they joined the party and in the end it was comfortable.LEICESTER co-promoter Alan Jones has confirmed British Under-21 Champion Robert Branford is now a full-time reserve for the Lions after Lewis Blackbird left the club to join Scunthorpe. The club had been planning to share the reserve position between two riders, one spot having initially been earmarked for Lewis Kerr over the winter before he joined Newcastle.Jones said: It has confirmed so far that our assessment of Kerr is proving spot on as Lewis is delivering good results for the Diamonds. We were undeterred and never lost sight of repeating the initiative resulting in an agreement with Robert Branford. Unfortunately we are back to square one again but we will park the idea for now and take stock of the situation at a later date.NEWCASTLE picked up maximum points from an emphatic 60-30 win over Glasgow, having collected one point from a narrow 44-46 defeat at Ashfield the previous day.Manager George English said: I think we all believed wed get a win over these Tigers, but to take them apart by such a magnificent margin was well beyond our hopes and again only shows what a good solid strong side we have as Glasgow are no slouches.PLYMOUTH co-promoter Ashley Taylor is looking for his side to play catch-up quickly as they launch their Premier League campaign with the visit of champions Scunthorpe on Friday.Taylor said: We have our first league match on Friday while some other teams have already completed five matches.REDCAR look to build on their impressive home and away wins over Sheffield when Rye House visit the South Tees Motorsports Park on Thursday.Manager Jitendra Duffill said: The boys were ruthless in their large home and away victories over the Sheffield Tigers last week and as a club we certainly enjoyed going top of the table. Rye House are developing a new generation of very capable riders and they will give their all. However, we are enjoying our new lease of life and with Micky 'The Flyer' Dyer in magnificent form then we are confident of victory.RYE HOUSE boss John Sampford has stressed the importance of building a first-leg lead against Sheffield when the Tigers visit Hoddesdon on Saturday in the first leg of a KO Cup quarter-final.Sampford said: We need to build as big an advantage as we can at home on Saturday. We have got riders who can score well at Sheffield - we drew there last October in the Challenge Trophy, and Olly Allen and Jason Garrity picked up good points there very recently in the British Semi-Finalbut we want to leave as little to chance as possible for the return match next Thursday.SCUNTHORPE boss Dave Peet said the capture of Lewis Blackbird to take a reserve berth for the Scorpions had paid instant dividends with his seven-point score in Mondays 49-45 win over Edinburgh.Peet said: Lewis Blackbird made a difference at reserve today. He gave us what weve been lacking in recent meetingsa bit more firepower at reserve.SHEFFIELD skipper Simon Stead admits the Tigers need to bounce back quickly after suffering back-to-back defeats against Redcar last week.Stead said: Last week was a bad week for us and we are really missing Richard Hall, it's tough without him when we have to go with rider replacement. Hopefully he will be back soon because we have riders visiting tracks for the first time in their career with us.SOMERSET boss Garry May was pleased with the complete performance delivered by his side as they ran up a 62-32 win over Leicester in last weeks Premier League clash at the Oak Tree Arena.May said: The boys rode really well and the new riding order certainly seemed to work, although I do appreciate that Leicester were weakened with the non-availability of Lasse Bjerre and the early withdrawal from the meeting of their No.1, Kauko Nieminen. But as the saying goes, you can only beat whats out there in front of you and the lads certainly did that to full effect.WORKINGTON continued their busy start to the season with a draw at Scunthorpe in the televised meeting followed by home and away successes over Berwick, while off-track the final rejection of Mason Camptons visa appeal was a major disappointment to the new Comets promotional team.Team manager and co-promoter Tony Jackson said: Naturally we are pleased with the way the season has started, with some positive results both home and away. However, we left Scunthorpe with some disappointment as we felt that the result could have been different had the decision in Heat 15 gone our way, but thats speedway I guess. Meanwhile to lose the services of Tero Aarnio with a foot injury following a crash at Workington on Monday was another blow, especially as we already have Chris Mills out of action with a broken wrist.The final refusal of Mason Camptons visa for this season is a major blow to the club, but especially to Mason, as his career has effectively been put on hold for a year. Needless to say we will keep him involved with all our plans for this season as he is part of the club and we can also confirm that he will be the first name on the team sheet for next season.
FIXTURE PICTURE
TUESDAY MAY 7:NATIONAL TROPHY: Isle of Wight v Buxton 7pm
WEDNESDAY MAY 8:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Birmingham v Eastbourne 7.30, Poole v Lakeside 7.30NATIONAL LEAGUE: Kings Lynn v Coventry 7.30
THURSDAY MAY 9:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Peterborough v Poole 7.30, Swindon v Belle Vue 7.30PREMIER LEAGUE: Redcar v Rye House 7.30
FRIDAY MAY 10:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Coventry v Eastbourne 8pm, Lakeside v Peterborough 8pmPREMIER LEAGUE: Plymouth v Scunthorpe 7.15, Somerset v Sheffield 7.30LEAGUE CUP: Edinburgh v Glasgow 7.30
SATURDAY MAY 11:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Eastbourne v Coventry 7.30PREMIER LEAGUE: Berwick v Leicester 7pmPREMIER LEAGUE KO CUP Q/F 1st leg: Rye House v Sheffield 8pm
SUNDAY MAY 12:PREMIER LEAGUE: Glasgow v Scunthorpe 3pm, Leicester v Ipswich 6pmLEAGUE CUP: Newcastle v Redcar 6.30NATIONAL TROPHY: Mildenhall v Buxton 4.30, Stoke v Kent 6pmMONDAY MAY 13:BRITISH FINAL: Wolverhampton 7.30NATIONAL TROPHY: Kent v Isle of Wight 6.30
TUESDAY MAY 14:NATIONAL TROPHY: Isle of Wight v Mildenhall 7pm
WEDNESDAY MAY 15:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Kings Lynn v Poole 7.30
THURSDAY MAY 16:PREMIER LEAGUE: Ipswich v Somerset 7.30, Redcar v Plymouth 7.30, PREMIER LEAGUE KO CUP Q/F 2nd leg: Sheffield v Rye House 7.45
FRIDAY MAY 17:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Lakeside v Birmingham 8pmPREMIER LEAGUE: Edinburgh v Plymouth 7.30NATIONAL LEAGUE KO CUP 1st leg: Coventry v Mildenhall 8pm
SATURDAY MAY 18:PREMIER LEAGUE: Leicester v Workington 7.30, Plymouth v Edinburgh 7.15BRITISH YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIP Round 2: Rye House 6pm
SUNDAY MAY 19:PREMIER LEAGUE: Glasgow v Leicester 3pmNATIONAL TROPHY: Mildenhall v Isle of Wight 4.30DAVID HOWE TESTIMONIAL: Scunthorpe 3pm
MONDAY MAY 20:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Belle Vue v Lakeside 7.30NATIONAL TROPHY: Kent v Stoke 6.30
TUESDAY MAY 21:PREMIER LEAGUE: Berwick v Newcastle 7pmNATIONAL LEAGUE: Dudley v Kings Lynn 7.30
WEDNESDAY MAY 22:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Birmingham v Wolverhampton 7.30, Poole v Lakeside 7.30NATIONAL LEAGUE: Kings Lynn v Isle of Wight 7.30
