BIG EVENT LATEST…
BRITISH Speedway Chairman Alex Harkess has confirmed the BSPA (British Speedway Promoters' Association) are to launch a full investigation into events surrounding the cancellation of the Elite Riders' Championship at Coventry.The meeting was called off due to an unfit track - something which Harkess admits was “totally unacceptable.”He said: “The first thing to say is to apologise to the many supporters who paid good money to see the event which had a superb line-up.“It is also not the start anyone wanted for the start of our new TV deal with Sky Sports.“We regret very much what happened but on Saturday morning I had assurances that everything would be fine with the track.“I can understand totally the anger of supporters and, of course, we offer our sincere apologies to everyone who was inconvenienced.“We will now carry out a full investigation to establish why this totally unacceptable situation was allowed to develop and will comment further when this investigation has been concluded.”The BSPA can also clarify the position surrounding re-admission tickets from Sunday's postponed Elite Riders' Championship.Tickets issued on entry to Coventry Stadium are valid for the re-staging of the event or any alternative shared event during the 2014 season.If, however, none of these dates are convenient then a full refund is available by forwarding tickets to:BSPA (ERC Refund), ACU House, Wood Street, RUGBY CV21 2YX.Ticket holders requesting a refund should indicate who cheques should be made payable to and include their full address.Alternatively, by providing bank details ie sort code and account number, a direct refund can be arranged.In addition, anyone who purchased a programme for the ERC may exchange this for a programme at another BSPA shared event.* JAMES Sarjeant scored a 15-point maximum at Plymouth to head the list of qualifiers for the British Under-21 Final.Sarjeant raced to five straight wins, finishing four points clear of his nearest challengers, and was joined on the semi-final rostrum by Jack Kingston and home rider James Shanes. Completing the top six, and also making it to Cradley on April 15, were Darryl Ritchings, Dan Greenwood and Connor Coles, whilst Nathan Greaves and Marc Owen will be reserves.
SPEEDWAYGB EVENTS SERIES 2014:ELITE RIDERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP: Re-staging TBCBRITISH UNDER-21 FINAL: Cradley, April 15BRITISH FINAL: Wolverhampton, June 16PREMIER LEAGUE PAIRS: Somerset, July 11PREMIER LEAGUE FOURS: Peterborough, August 3PREMIER RIDERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP: Sheffield, September 21NATIONAL LEAGUE MAJOR EVENTS:NATIONAL LEAGUE PAIRS: Mildenhall, June 15NATIONAL LEAGUE FOURS: Coventry, August 10NATIONAL LEAGUE RIDERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP: Rye House, September 28BRITISH SPEEDWAY FIM EVENT DATES:WORLD UNDER-21 CHAMPIONSHIP Semi-Final: Leicester, May 10
ELITE LEAGUE LATEST…
BELLE VUE reserve Stefan Nielsen is keen to take his chance in the Elite League as part of the new draft system.Nielsen told Speedway Star: “For me I just wanted to ride for the club that wanted me the most, and Belle Vue picked me first. I want to come here and do my absolute best for the team.“We have got to expect travelling in speedway. As it turns out I have got a mechanic here in Manchester so it has all worked out alright.”BIRMINGHAM boss Jack Lee says the Brummies must quickly bounce back from a disappointing start to the season as they were beaten by 23-points at Wolverhampton in their opening fixture.Lee said: “It was the first meeting of the season for all the boys and like everyone else I was expecting a better performance than we got."It's definitely not the start we were looking for but we've just got to put it behind us now and make sure we do a much better job against Belle Vue on Wednesday."COVENTRY skipper Chris Harris is expecting a strong team spirit amongst the Bees this season despite the side having been completely re-built over the winter.Harris said: “We’re all getting on well and the banter has been fantastic. It’s nice to see that we’ve gelled quickly and hopefully that will move on to when we’re out there racing with each other.“I’m really happy with the team, and I also think we’ve got some of the strongest youngsters, which can only be good for the club and the future.”EASTBOURNE boss Trevor Geer expects his riders to quickly find their form for their Elite League opener this weekend after encountering some first-night problems during Joonas Kylmakorpi’s Testimonial at Arlington last Saturday.Geer said: “That meeting was a great shakedown for the riders. Timo Lahti and Mikkel Michelsen were getting their first look at the track this year and had to work hard to get their bikes set up.“Frankly, I would have been more worried if everything had gone smoothly in that meeting. That was the hard work out the team needed.”KING’S LYNN star Rory Schlein is happy to take on the added responsibility of club captaincy this season.Schlein told the Eastern Daily Press: “I captained Belle Vue for a year. Some say it can be a bit of a burden but I think I’m old enough now and mature enough to take it on. I know all of the lads quite well so that’ll make the job ten times easier. So far, it feels right.”LAKESIDE co-promoter Jon Cook is backing Danish youngster Mikkel Bech to prove one of the key signings of the winter as he makes his Elite League debut with the Hammers.Cook said: “We beat off a string of clubs to bring Mikkel to Essex and he has already shown his potential at the Raceway with a double figure score against us last season and started this season with another big return for his Polish club at King’s Lynn. “With the new format I expect him to move quickly to heat leader status and his terrific style of racing is going to provide plenty of entertainment for our fans on Friday nights.”LEICESTER promoter David Hemsley urged supporters not to hit the panic button after a surprise home challenge match defeat at the hands of Premier League team Peterborough.Hemsley said: “We deliberately resisted the temptation to fill Jason Doyle’s position with a guest rider as that would have defeated the object of the exercise and so we went with the rider replacement facility to give additional rides to four of the team. “We are a new team with no home track advantage at the moment so our riders were as much the away team as Peterborough but that will come quickly and we can take some positives from the meeting.”POOLE promoter Matt Ford says he is excited by his new-look line-up as the Pirates prepare to launch their Elite League title defence following last year’s dramatic success.Ford said: “Defending titles is always much harder. Last year's success meant a lot, in the manner that we came back to win it and to be honest I thought it would be nice if everything had stopped there.“But, now I'm ready to go again and for the team to do their bit to see if we can retain that title of champions. It is going to be very tough, but I know the lads are really determined to give their all.”SWINDON boss Alun Rossiter says there is a feel-good atmosphere at Blunsdon following a successful press and practice day – with his side looking to emulate the Robins’ 2012 Elite League title winners.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.”WOLVERHAMPTON made a flying start to the new Elite League season with a 58-35 home win over Birmingham – and both skipper Tai Woffinden and debutant Piotr Pawlicki scored maximums.Manager Peter Adams said: “I expected it to be much closer to be honest with you but we had far too much for them in the heat-leader and second string departments in the end. Everybody did more or less what we expected if not more, and it was a very encouraging performance.“It comes with a word of warning as we know we'll face much tougher opposition as the season progresses, but we're pleased to get off to a winning start.”
PREMIER LEAGUE LATEST…
BERWICK director George Hepburn admits the signing of Danish star Claus Vissing was one of the club’s winter priorities.Hepburn told Speedway Star: “As everyone knows, we have been tracking Claus for some time. He always seems to go well at Shielfield and we are expecting him to be a big scorer for us at home.”EDINBURGH co-promoter John Campbell expects the club to reach their fund-raising target for the new air-fence at Armadale which is in place ahead of Friday’s opening fixture against Glasgow.Campbell told the Edinburgh Evening News: “We had a number of accidents last season so hopefully the air fence will see riders get up more readily from any pile-up as opposed to smashing through the safety boards, but it won’t eliminate them altogether because crashes happen in so many different ways. We are very close to reaching our final target of £20,000 and I’m sure we will achieve that after our opening match against Glasgow is over.”GLASGOW co-promoter Colin Hamilton is backing the club’s youthful trio of Kasper Lykke, Anders Thomsen and Dimitri Berge to shine this season.Hamilton said: “I think it is good and we think that the three riders of that age will fit in nicely with Stewart Dickson. When he’s team managing, he’ll be able to pass on his experience and tactics, etc. They will also benefit from the older members of the team as well. It is a good blend between youth and experience and we certainly hope it will work for us this year.”IPSWICH boss Chris Louis believes the Premier League is as open as ever this season as the Witches prepare for their fourth season at that level.Louis told Speedway Star: “It is impossible to pick a winner or even name who you think should be classed as favourites. It would be unfair to rule out any team at this stage. As far as I can see, every one of the clubs has the ability to win meetings both home and away.”NEWCASTLE manager George English took consolation from a narrow home win although Workington took overall honours in a closely-fought two-legged encounter for the Ian Thomas Shield.English said: “I thought we rode very well and the most important thing was to get the win on the night – which we did after a tremendously exciting match which went right down to the wire.”PETERBOROUGH recovered from an opening-night setback at home to Rye House by taking an away win from their inter-league challenge at Leicester – and they know they need further away success to progress in the League Cup.Co-boss Blayne Scroggins said: “We were given a lesson in gating, and the one team you don’t want to come up against when you can’t gate is Rye House. I don’t think it was a bad performance, everyone was working hard, but now we’ve got to make up for that at some difficult away tracks.”PLYMOUTH co-promoter Ashley Taylor is hoping the Devils newcomers can quickly adapt to their home track in Saturday’s opener against Somerset.Taylor said: “It is also going to be interesting to see how Sam Simota, Roland Benko and Kalle Katajisto go in their first competitive fixture at the St Boniface Arena. Sam looked really good and professional in last Saturday’s practice session while Roland has taken advantage of also attending the previous week’s Demons practice.”REDCAR newcomer Richard Hall is keen to take advantage of his late call-up back to Premier League action with the Bears.Hall told Speedway Star: “I became a bit of a track specialist at Sheffield and now I hope the move might help me improve my away average a bit. It’s a new beginning for me and hopefully I can make it a good home.”RYE HOUSE boss John Sampford admits the Rockets’ surprise win at Peterborough last week has given them a major boost at the start of the season.Sampford said: “We’re going to carry a lot of initial momentum into Ipswich on Thursday. It really was a wonderful result, and a night to remember. We’ve not managed too many victories at Peterborough over the years, which made it even sweeter. Everyone gave everything, and I couldn’t have asked for any more.”SCUNTHORPE have confirmed a return to team management duties for Dave Peet in 2014 – and this time he will be in charge for their full Premier League programme.Peet said: “It’s great to be back as team manager at Scunthorpe, and I’m delighted that I will be team manager for all our meetings this season, both home and away. Last year was quite start-stop for me, with me only doing the odd away meeting. There were less Premier League fixtures last season, and sometimes we went three weeks without a home meeting. So I wasn’t seeing the riders every week.”SHEFFIELD will include speedway legend Sam Ermolenko, 53, in the line-up for their season-opening Air Fence Fund Bonazna at Owlerton on Thursday.Former World Champion Ermolenko said: “I'm a regular visitor at Sheffield so I'm really pleased to be able to help in what should be an entertaining meeting to raise some money for the new air fence. The new promoters accept the fact I'm not going to be sticking my neck on the line but I'll be going out there to enjoy myself, have some fun and hopefully I'll be fairly competitive. I'll still always have a smile on my face when I ride my speedway bike which is the main thing.”SOMERSET boss Garry May is keen for his new-look side to make an immediate impression in this weekend’s challenge fixtures against Plymouth.May said: “I know this might only be billed as a challenge match, but we will not be taking things lightly. I want the team to get into the winning habit right from the off and to install that same winning mentality that took us to the League and Cup double last year.”WORKINGTON are looking forward to getting down to the serious business of starting their League Cup campaign this weekend when they host Glasgow – following aggregate victory over Newcastle in the Ian Thomas Shield.Manager Tony Jackson said: “We were delighted to start the season off with a victory over two legs to claim the Ian Thomas Shield back from Newcastle. They were two very good meetings and provided an excellent work out for both teams. It is a shame that the weather curtailed our home leg after ten heats but nevertheless the riders got plenty of racing practice and a chance to iron out any mechanical problems before the official fixtures get underway this weekend.“This Saturday will see a quick return to Derwent Park for long-time Comets favourite Rusty Harrison, who will be keen to take points off his former team-mates. Not forgetting of course that Rusty will be back the following weekend when we are delighted to be able to stage his well-deserved testimonial meeting, which we hope will be a great success as he has assembled an excellent line-up for the event.”
FIXTURE PICTURE…
TUESDAY MARCH 25:LEAGUE CUP: Peterborough v Plymouth 7.30
WEDNESDAY MARCH 26:ELITE LEAGUE: Birmingham v Belle Vue 7.30CHALLENGE 1st leg: Poole v Lakeside 7.30NATIONAL SHIELD 1st leg: King’s Lynn v Cradley 7.30
THURSDAY MARCH 27:ELITE SHIELD 1st leg: Swindon v Poole 7.30LEAGUE CUP: Ipswich v Rye House 7.30TWEED/TEES TROPHY 1st leg: Redcar v Berwick 7.30AIR FENCE FUND BONANZA: Sheffield 7.45
FRIDAY MARCH 28:ELITE LEAGUE: Coventry v Birmingham 7.30, Lakeside v Swindon 8pmAIR FENCE CHALLENGE: Edinburgh v Glasgow 7.30, Somerset v Plymouth 7.30
SATURDAY MARCH 29:ELITE LEAGUE: Eastbourne v Birmingham 7.30, Leicester v Wolverhampton 7.30LEAGUE CUP: Workington v Glasgow 7pmNATIONAL LEAGUE: Devon v Coventry 1.30TWEED/TEES TROPHY 2nd leg: Berwick v Redcar 7pmEAST OF ENGLAND CUP 1st leg: Rye House v Peterborough 7pmAIR FENCE CHALLENGE: Plymouth v Somerset 7.15
CHALLENGE: Stoke v King’s Lynn postponed, see below
SUNDAY MARCH 30:LEAGUE CUP: Newcastle v Redcar 6.30, Scunthorpe v Sheffield 3pmNATIONAL LEAGUE: Scunthorpe v Kent (follows LC fixture)AIR FENCE CHALLENGE: Glasgow v Edinburgh 3pm
CHALLENGEStoke v King's Lynn - Sunday March 30, 3pm
TUESDAY APRIL 1:LEAGUE CUP: Peterborough v Somerset 7.30TRAVEL PLUS TROPHY 2nd leg: Cradley v Coventry 7.30
WEDNESDAY APRIL 2:ELITE LEAGUE: Birmingham v Lakeside 7.30NATIONAL LEAGUE KO CUP Q/F 1st leg: King’s Lynn v Scunthorpe 7.30
THURSDAY APRIL 3:ELITE LEAGUE: Swindon v Coventry 7.30LEAGUE CUP: Ipswich v Somerset 7.30, Redcar v Scunthorpe 7.30, Sheffield v Newcastle 7.45
FRIDAY APRIL 4:ELITE LEAGUE: Lakeside v Leicester 8pmLEAGUE CUP: Edinburgh v Berwick 7.30, Plymouth v Rye House 7.15PREMIER SHIELD 1st leg: Somerset v Newcastle 7.30NATIONAL LEAGUE: Coventry v Scunthorpe 7.30
SATURDAY APRIL 5:ELITE LEAGUE: Eastbourne v Leicester 7.30LEAGUE CUP: Berwick v Edinburgh 7pm, Rye House v Plymouth 7pmRUSTY HARRISON TESTIMONIAL: Workington 7pm
SUNDAY APRIL 6:LEAGUE CUP: Glasgow v Workington 3pm, Scunthorpe v Redcar 3pmPREMIER SHIELD 2nd leg: Newcastle v Somerset 6.30NATIONAL LEAGUE KO CUP Q/F 2nd leg: Scunthorpe v King’s Lynn (follows LC fixture)NATIONAL TROPHY: Leicester v Kent 4pm, Mildenhall v Stoke 3.30
MONDAY APRIL 7:ELITE LEAGUE: Belle Vue v Swindon 7.30CHALLENGE: Peterborough v Leicester 7.30
TUESDAY APRIL 8:NATIONAL SHIELD 2nd leg: Cradley v King’s Lynn 7.30
WEDNESDAY APRIL 9:ELITE LEAGUE: Birmingham v Coventry 7.30, King’s Lynn v Lakeside 7.30, Poole v Eastbourne 7.30
ENDS
SATURDAY MARCH 29:
CHALLENGEStoke v King's Lynn - OFFTo be re-staged on Sunday March 30, 3pm
