(SPEEDWAY 1 – SATURDAY PREVIEW)
THE remaining six places in the British Under-21 Final will be decided tonight as Plymouth host the semi-final at the St Boniface Arena.Co-promoter Seemond Stephens said: “The meeting is a perfect example of what we are attempting to achieve here with the development of young British riders for the future.“It will be an excellent opportunity for James (Shanes), who made a promising start for the Demons last Saturday, and we will be hoping he can finish among the top six to book his place in the final.” Line-up: Dan Greenwood (Coventry Storm), Ben Morley (Lakeside/Kent), Darryl Ritchings (Swindon/King’s Lynn Young Stars), James Shanes (Devon), Danny Verge (unattached), James Sarjeant (Coventry/Coventry Storm), Danny Phillips (Cradley), Connor Mountain (Mildenhall), Ryan MacDonald (Scunthorpe Stags), Marc Owen (unattached), Rob Shuttleworth (Stoke), Nathan Greaves (Cradley), Ryan Terry-Daley (Coventry Storm), Tom Woolley (Buxton), Connor Coles (Mildenhall), Jack Kingston (Mildenhall). Reserves: David Holt, Tyler Govier.Elite League newcomers Leicester have elected to operate the rider-replacement facility for the absent Jason Doyle in their challenge fixture against Peterborough.Promoter David Hemsley said: “Whilst this is not an ideal situation I would rather give my own riders extra races at the expense of another club’s asset because at this time of the season the sooner our new team becomes accustomed to the Leicester track the better it will be, particularly as our first Elite League fixture against Wolverhampton is in just over a week’s time.”Workington and Newcastle race the first of two meetings in two days, starting at Derwent Park, as the clubs contest the Ian Thomas Shield.Comets boss Tony Jackson said: “Following the various team building events and practice sessions that have taken place leading up to this weekend’s fixtures, we are determined to start the season off by claiming the shield from the Diamonds, who won last year’s inaugural two-legged event.”And there are major Testimonial events at Eastbourne and Ipswich as Joonas Kylmakorpi and Morten Risager respectively celebrate their decades in British Speedway.Eastbourne co-promoter Mike Bellerby said: “It is a real pleasure for us to be supporting Joonas in his arrangements for Saturday’s meeting. He has brought together an exciting line-up that looks set to get this season’s racing here off to a brilliant start. I, for one, would not like to tip a winner.”Risager, meanwhile, has called up former team-mates Taylor Poole and Leigh Lanham to complete his line-up, and said: “I’m really happy they have agreed to race and I know the Foxhall public will look forward to seeing them again. Nearly everything is ready for the big night now and I can’t wait for it to start.”
(SPEEDWAY 2)
BIRMINGHAM skipper Danny King is keen to make his mark in Sunday’s Elite Riders’ Championship at Coventry (6pm).King, who clocked the fastest race-winning time at Brandon in the 2013 season, is keen to establish himself as an out-and-out No.1 with the Brummies this year.He said: “Coventry is a place I can usually score well at, it’s a place I like and I’m going there looking to put on a big performance.“I know I can compete against the big GP riders on any given day. I just have to work on doing it consistently and that is my big goal for 2014. I’ve had a taste of being No.1 in the Elite League in each of the last two seasons but I feel I’m at the point in my career where I should be able to stay there.”
(SPEEDWAY 3)
EASTBOURNE have handed Timo Lahti a recall to their team with Kim Nilsson missing the early part of the season due to injury.Finnish rider Lahti, who rode for the Eagles in the last three years, has agreed a short-term deal and will line up in their Elite League opener against Birmingham next Saturday.Nilsson was injured in pre-season training in the USA and hopes to return early in May.Eastbourne co-promoter Mike Bellerby said: “We have received approval from the sport’s management committee to reintroduce Timo to our team as a temporary replacement for the injured Kim.”
(SPEEDWAY 4)
SOMERSET have made a dramatic late team change – with Nick Morris returning to the Rebels in place of Ty Proctor.Morris was initially ruled out of the club’s plans following confirmation of Brady Kurtz’s assessed average, whilst Proctor was signed when previous No.1 Jason Doyle’s visa issues meant he would only be able to race in one league.Manager Garry May said: “When I originally released Nick from our proposed team for 2014 towards the end of last year, the deciding factor was the number of Somerset matches he would have missed due to other potential riding commitments. But I was recently advised that a change in those commitments had freed up his schedule to the extent that he could be accommodated back within the Somerset line-up.“I am obviously sorry that Ty has effectively lost his team place at Somerset even before a wheel has been turned, but with Nick’s availability now not being such an issue I felt it only right to restore him to the line-up, albeit being at Ty’s expense, plus I think that having Nick at No.1 will give us a more of a cutting edge at the top end of the team.”
(SPEEDWAY 5)
SWINDON promoter Alun Rossiter says there is a positive mood at Blunsdon as his side prepares for their Elite League challenge.The Robins boss was highly encouraged by the reaction of the public to the Robins when they staged their press and practice events earlier in the week.Rossiter said: “It was a really successful day. It’s great to be positive about things, especially after all of the negativity that we had to endure last season.“I was really enthused by the turn-out of supporters, I know people have to be at work in the afternoon but there were still crowds who turned out and then the evening was really good as well. Hopefully that bodes well for the season ahead. The team were well received in the bar for the questions and answers, so it was really positive all-round.”
(FIXTURES)
SATURDAY MARCH 22:BRITISH U21 SEMI-FINAL: Plymouth 7.15IAN THOMAS SHIELD 1st leg: Workington v Newcastle 7pmCHALLENGE: Leicester v Peterborough 7.30JOONAS KYLMAKORPI TESTIMONIAL: Eastbourne 7.30MORTEN RISAGER TESTIMONIAL: Ipswich 7.15
SUNDAY MARCH 23:ELITE RIDERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP: Coventry 6pmIAN THOMAS SHIELD 2nd leg: Newcastle v Workington 6.30BRITISH YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIP Round 1: Scunthorpe 3pm
MONDAY MARCH 24:ELITE LEAGUE: Wolverhampton v Birmingham 7.30
TUESDAY MARCH 25:LEAGUE CUP: Peterborough v Plymouth 7.30
