(SPEEDWAY 1)

STUART Robson, one of the most popular riders of the modern Lakeside era, will be joining the Hammers squad for the big opening night of the season next month.Robson, who ended his retirement to join the club in 2009, will appear in the Spring Trophy on Friday, March 18, joining Lewis Bridger and Dennis Jonsson as well as the 2016 Hammers in what promises to be a memorable start to the season for the fans.The club have also confirmed the meeting will be a fundraiser for the replacement of the safety fence after some sections were condemned by a Speedway Control Bureau track inspection.Club co-promoter Jon Cook said: “It's great to have Robbo back, the plan is very much for this to be an in-house event for Hammers fans and riders alike and the revenue raised will benefit our riders significantly by funding those safety improvements required.”(SPEEDWAY 2)

PETERBOROUGH chief Ged Rathbone has hailed the loyalty of Simon Lambert.The 26 year-old will focus solely on racing for Panthers at Premier League level in 2016 after pulling out of a deal to line up as a draft reserve for King’s Lynn in the Elite League – an arrangement which would have created up to nine possible fixture clashes during the season.Rathbone said: “It was not an acceptable situation to be without an influential rider for more than a quarter of our fixtures.“Even though ourselves and Lynn would have happily worked together to try to ensure Simon missed fewer Peterborough meetings, the rules are in black and white.“We have to put Panthers first and we spoke to Simon at length about our concerns. We have been loyal to Simon and he has opted to repay that loyalty by committing to race for Peterborough this season.”