MAJOR EVENTS LATEST…

SIMON Stead and Richard Lawson took the individual honours in the British Semi-Finals as places were decided for Belle Vue next month.Sheffield skipper Stead triumphed at Scunthorpe, whilst Lawson delighted home fans at Glasgow as he edged out seven-time champion Scott Nicholls on countback.And BSPA Management Committee member George English says the racing at both meetings was of a consistently high level with riders battling to appear at the National Speedway Stadium on June 13.English said: “The best of British Speedway was displayed with the two British semi-finals held over the last few days. “Both meetings at Scunthorpe and Glasgow were excellent advertisements for the sport with riders battling for a place in the British Final in two keenly contested meetings that produced excellent racing from the off and held their excitement right up to the nail-biting conclusions. “With my MC hat on as well as looking after my own (Newcastle) riders I was at both meetings and they were a credit to the sport.”Stead, who has bounced back from serious injury last year, headed the scores with 13 at the Eddie Wright Raceway and was joined on the rostrum by home man Josh Auty and Kyle Howarth.The other qualifiers from that meeting were three-time champion Chris Harris, Jason Garrity, Robert Lambert and Richard Hall.Lawson, meanwhile, also scored 13 at Glasgow and was declared meeting winner after having more race victories than Nicholls.Steve Worrall completed the rostrum finishers, ahead of brother Richie and Paul Starke on countback, with Craig Cook and Ben Barker taking the remaining qualifying places.Lawson said: “I felt fairly confident today that I didn't make a start I could make some passes, but I think it's a really good racetrack and if you've got the right riders, it produces it.“I'm desperate to get in the Grand Final - it would be amazing to be in that, and see where we go from there.“I came up a bit short last year - some people say I should have been excluded, some don't - so I've still got that fire in my belly from then and want to make up for it, for sure.”The final two British Final places will be determined by the BSPA Wild Card selections.

BRITISH SPEEDWAY MAJOR EVENTS 2016BRITISH UNDER-21 FINAL: JOSH BATESBRITISH FINAL: Belle Vue, June 13PREMIER LEAGUE PAIRS: Somerset, July 8PREMIER LEAGUE FOURS WEEKEND: Peterborough, July 23/24PREMIER LEAGUE RIDERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP: Sheffield, September 11ELITE LEAGUE RIDERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP: Coventry, Date TBC

NATIONAL LEAGUE MAJOR EVENTS 2016NATIONAL LEAGUE FOURS: Coventry, August 14NATIONAL LEAGUE PAIRS: King’s Lynn, August 27NATIONAL LEAGUE RIDERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP: Leicester, September 17

BRITISH SPEEDWAY FIM EVENTS 2016:WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP QUALIFIER: FREDRIK LINDGRENWORLD UNDER-21 QUALIFIER: Belle Vue, May 21WORLD UNDER-21 FINAL Round 1: King’s Lynn, June 18

ELITE LEAGUE LATEST…

BELLE VUE boss Mark Lemon admitted a lack of home track advantage was always a concern ahead of their National Speedway Stadium opener against Swindon – when the Robins came away with a win.Lemon said: “To lose at home is never good but we knew that was potentially on the cards. We’ve not had a home meeting before tonight and Swindon have been travelling very well.“Credit where credit’s due. The track was a leveller and they adapted to the conditions better than us but you’d need to put the result down to one man, Rohan Tungate, who they had at reserve.”COVENTRY boss Gary Havelock re-affirmed his backing for Great Britain international Danny King, who ended a slump by scoring paid-11 in the Bees’ recent home win over Wolverhampton.Havelock said: “I’ve been speaking to Danny regularly on the phone, telling him that the reason he’s in the team is that we believe in him.“We believed in him last year and we believe in him this year, and just because he’s had a couple of bad meetings it doesn’t change that. But to come back from scoring just two points on a thoroughly miserable night just seven days before to riding like he did was amazing.”KING’S LYNN manager Rob Lyon says Troy Batchelor is keen to make up for lost time as he gets his season underway following the broken arm he suffered over the winter.Lyon said: “Troy has a point to prove, and he’s keen to get back into it some ten years after he last rode for the club.“He’s looking forward to being involved here again, and we all know what he’s capable of, which is why I signed him in the first place and I do feel eventually it will make us a stronger unit overall.”LAKESIDE promoter Jon Cook believes the Hammers’ upcoming run of meetings – with six matches in the space of three weeks – could well define their season.Cook said: “We need to try and pick up more points on the road because we are better than our recent results.“We are relieved to have that away win at Leicester behind us, but that won’t be enough to get us into the play-offs. We’ve got to focus on those away meetings to start picking up at least a point, because we should have got that at both Wolverhampton and Swindon.”LEICESTER boss Norrie Allan said it was always a case of damage limitation after a disastrous start – including three disqualifications - at Wolverhampton on Monday, when the Lions fell to a 31-58 defeat.Allan said: “It took us a long time to get going after those three early setbacks. Too long in fact as we were 23 points down after seven heats and it takes something special to pull such a deficit back. “To my relief we improved after that and in fact from that stage onwards the Wolves only scored four more points than we did but of course the damage had already been done earlier.”POOLE promoter Matt Ford has paid tribute to former skipper Davey Watt ahead of his return to Wimborne Road with his new club Leicester on Wednesday.Ford said: “I am genuinely happy that Davey has been sorted out with another Elite League club. As I said at the time, I had limited opportunity to make a move and I did what I thought was best for Poole Speedway. To see Davey racing again is good news and I figure that he will be keen to try and prove a point to me.“I am certain he will receive a very warm welcome when he is introduced on Wednesday and he very much deserves that. If he finds the form that we know he is capable of then for sure he will be a thorn in our side.”SWINDON star Josh Grajczonek was delighted with the Robins’ win at former club Belle Vue last Wednesday which maintained their impressive run of form.Grajczonek said: “It was another great win for the boys and even though we didn't have Jason (Doyle) here Chris (Harris) stepped in and did a great job for the team. The whole place is amazing and it's a great track to ride and to equal the track record is just the icing on what has been a great night for me. “It's early days we know, but it's great to have the points on the board at this early stage of the season.”WOLVERHAMPTON maintained their 100 per cent home record with a convincing 58-31 win over Leicester on Monday to return to the top of the table.Boss Peter Adams said: “The team were still hurting from the defeat at Coventry last week and they were determined to take it out on somebody and unfortunately for Leicester they were next in the firing line.“We're very solid throughout this year and we've definitely got a trump card this year by always having at least one strong reserve. We're riding with a lot of confidence right now but it's important we stay focused and take one meeting at a time.”

PREMIER LEAGUE LATEST…

BERWICK suffered their third consecutive defeat as they went down 49-41 at home to Sheffield.The Bandits were dealt a blow just hours before the Premier League fixture when reserve Liam Carr was ruled out of the meeting with a broken scaphoid picked up in the National League the previous night.Team manager Scott Courtney offered no excuses however and says his riders must improve. “Again a side has come here and shown us determinedly and professionally the way to race and win matches around our own track despite us being a good side,” he said.“Whatever the problem is we need to solve it quickly and get the wins back on our side of the score card as there is still sufficient season left to make a good poke at success.” EDINBURGH are through to the next round of the Premier League Knockout Cup after a 96-83 aggregate victory over Plymouth.Despite narrowly losing 47-42 in the second leg, the Monarchs comprehensive 54-36 win the night before was enough to see them progress as they aim to regain the trophy they won in 2014.After a mixed start to the season, reserve Max Clegg returned to fine form bagging 15 paid 18 over the two legs and team boss John Campbell was quick to praise the young Brit.“I think Max has finally turned the corner and is now looking much more confident,” Campbell told the Edinburgh Evening News. “He was a lot happier in the pits and was much better in himself.” GLASGOW favourite Richard Lawson qualified from the second British Semi-Final after an impressive performance on home shale.The 30-year-old finished on 13-points as he finished ahead of seven-time British Champion Scott Nicholls on countback.After an encouraging performance in 2015, Lawson says he wants to go one step further in this year’s tournament. “I’m desperate to get in the grand final – it would be amazing to be in that and see where we go from there,” said Lawson.“I came up a bit short last year; some people say I should’ve been excluded, some don’t, so I’ve still got that fire in my belly from then and want to make up for it for sure.” IPSWICH have snapped up Oliver Greenwood at reserve as he replaces Darryl Ritchings in the No.7 berth.Witches team manager Ritchie Hawkins admits changes needed to be made but was quick to back the outgoing Ritchings.Said Hawkins: “I've not got a bad word to say about him; I hope he gets another shot in the Premier League because he is talented enough to do a job.“I've seen a lot of Ollie though. Two years ago he was going really well and I don't think he had such a good year last year in the Premier League, but I'd have liked to have seen him at Ipswich last season.”NEWCASTLE will be back in action on Monday as they host Redcar in the League Cup.A win for the Diamonds would see them move level on points with Workington in the Northern Group of the competition.George English’s side will return to the shale after just over two weeks since their 51-39 home win over Berwick.PETERBOROUGH promoter Ged Rathbone has revealed how he is keen to tie up a deal which would see him become the sole owner of the club.2016 is the third year Rathbone has been with the Panthers and says he is more determined than ever to complete his transformation of the East of England Showground outfit.Said Rathbone: “I love Peterborough Speedway and my appetite for the sport is as big as it has ever been.“I have a deal in place with Readypower to become sole owner of the club at the end of this season and that is the route I ideally want to go down after putting in so much hard work in the last 18 months.”PLYMOUTH boss Lee Trigger has challenged his side to build on their 47-42 win over Edinburgh – and dump local rivals Somerset out of the League Cup in the process.The Devils travel to the Rebels on Friday before hosting them the following night at the St Bonniface Arena.Said Trigger: “Although we cannot make any further progress ourselves, it is in our hands to put Somerset out of the competition.“Bearing in mind the local rivalry, we will be looking to put one over on the Rebels and claim the local bragging rights.”REDCAR claimed their first Premier League win of the campaign with a 47-43 win over Plymouth.The struggling Bears pulled off a dramatic comeback, snatching the three league points in the final heat with a 5-1 from Hugh Skidmore and David Bellego – and that was the only time Jitendra Duffill’s side led in the whole of the meeting!RYE HOUSE qualified for the Quarter-Finals of the Knockout Cup with a 97-83 victory over Ipswich.After a narrow two-point defeat in the first leg, the Rockets pulled of a 53-37 win at Hoddesdon to progress in the competition.Rockets star Kasper Lykke displayed a much more encouraging performance and thanked his team-mates for helping him back to double figures. Said Lykke: “It makes it easier with a good team spirit, and great team mates who are looking after each other both on and off the track.I’ve got to be honest, I was struggling with a few things, mentally and stuff, and it was a bit hard. “But now I feel that we’re getting back on it, and I’m also getting more meetings back home now as well to build momentum.”SCUNTHORPE expect to announce a new-look line-up later this week ahead of Sunday’s derby against Sheffield.Scorpions promoter Rob Godfrey confirmed Ashley Morris would be one rider making way from his temporary contract.Said Godfrey: “I’d like to thank Ash for his efforts during his short stay with us; he scored points and did the job that we asked of him.“I’m sure he will get another Premier League team place very soon, but unfortunately his average didn’t fit in with our plans to get a big hitter back down to No 6.”SHEFFIELD co-boss Marc Bates praised his side after picking up back-to-back victories in the Premier League which ended a run of three straight defeats.The Tigers put in a magnificent display to see off strongly fancied Glasgow 54-38 before sealing a 49-41 win at Berwick just two days later.Said Bates: “We were disappointed after our defeats against Plymouth and Peterborough, the lads knew they had to turn things around and they have done.“We’ve started to show what we are capable of now and we’ll be heading into the meeting against Rye House on Thursday looking to keep this form going.”SOMERSET boss Garry May has warned his side to be wary of Plymouth as the two go head-to-head in the League Cup this weekend.The Rebels need to pick up back-to-back victories against their local rivals to see them through to the semi-finals of the competition.Said May: “Despite not being able to qualify themselves, Plymouth will be going all out to put a spanner in the works and stop us from topping the group.“It is all set up for an exciting, but hopefully not too nerve-racking, two nights of speedway, and hopefully the Somerset fans will turn out in their droves to not only get behind the boys.”WORKINGTON were eliminated from the Knockout Cup by Somerset for a third time in four seasons.The Comets went down 98-82 on aggregate and also saw their unbeaten home run come to an end with a 46-44 defeat in the second leg.Team manager Tony Jackson said: “It seems very much as if the Rebels are our bogey team as far as the Knockout Cup competition is concerned after this latest cup defeat.Although we recovered to briefly put our noses in front on the night we never realistically looked likely to make up the first leg deficit, and it was very disappointing to see us surrender our unbeaten home record in the last race.”

NATIONAL LEAGUE LATEST…

BELLE VUE seized control of their Knockout Cup tie with Stoke as they raced to a 52-38 first leg victory at Loomer Road.Team manager Graham Goodwin was delighted to see them build up a healthy lead to take into the second leg on home shale next Wednesday, May 25 (7.30).Goodwin said: “We’d have been happy going into the second leg with just a small lead or even level pegging, so to be going into it with a 14-point advantage is more than we could possibly expect.“Overall, it was a solid team performance from everyone tonight and pretty much reflects the same story from our last three matches. All of the boys are very keen, talking and helping each other.”BIRMINGHAM extended their unbeaten run to 10 meetings with away wins at King’s Lynn and Mildenhall last week.After their hard-fought 52-37 win at West Row on Sunday, Drury says confidence is “sky high” heading into their home clash with Belle Vue on Wednesday (7.30).Drury said: “It was a tough start for us, but, as I keep saying after every meeting, all the riders contributed with valuable points. “We knew what we needed to do, we got the job done and we know head into another difficult match on Wednesday against Belle Vue with confidence sky high after 10 meetings unbeaten.” BUXTON slumped to a heavy 55-35 home defeat against Stoke on Sunday – and team boss Jason Pipe could not hide his disappointment.Pipe commented: “I must admit, when I saw that Stoke had strengthened up last week, I did fear the worst on Sunday but what I didn't expect was the big home defeat. “That defeat really hurt and one or two of our riders couldn't get to grips with their own track, which is understandable when they've had no practice time on it and had only 1 meeting on it four weeks ago.”COVENTRY Storm endured a miserable evening as they went down 66-24 against Kent at Central Park on Monday.Frustrated team boss Laurence Rogers said: Boss Laurence Rogers said: “If we were going to have any luck tonight it was bad, and obviously we missed Liam (Carr) badly – he scored 17 here last time.“We just couldn’t get going. They are a strong team, they’re riding well, the luck wasn’t on our side and some of the refereeing was debatable.“We have to put it behind us and re-group for next week. It’s one of those nights, but to have Dan (Greenwood) back to his very best is the big thing we can take out of it.”CRADLEY ace James Purchase believes he turned a corner in their 48-42 win over the Isle of Wight last week.Purchase said: “I really needed that score and performance – it’s a massive confidence boost and I think that’s the turning point in my season.“It’s been a tough start but it’s the same for everyone really and I told myself I needed to man up, focus and get on with it and it shows what I can do on the bike.” EASTBOURNE ace Adam Ellis is loving life at Arlington after agreeing to extend his stay with the club.Ellis told the Speedway Star: “It has been pretty good. I’ve tried out a few new things and tried to help out the others as well. Looking at the team, you can see they are coming on and getting better. The team is pretty strong.“I want to put more meetings on my calendar. If I just rode for Poole, I wouldn’t have a lot of meetings. It started off quite busy with Poole but it has gone quieter and this has been the chance to ride more. This will be enough to see me through until the end of the season.” ISLE OF WIGHT will return to action when they host Mildenhall in the National Trophy at Smallbrook on Thursday. KENT romped to a comprehensive 66-24 win over Coventry Storm on Monday with another eye-opening performance.The in-form Kings produced another crushing victory to extend their unbeaten record to nine meetings in all competitions in 2016.They will now host the Crayford Invicta Pairs at Central Park next Monday (6.30) before returning to National League action at home against Mildenhall a week later.KING’S LYNN bounced back to winning ways in style with a 48-42 away win at Coventry on Friday.Team boss Dale Allitt was full of praise for the character shown by his side to bounce back from their crushing home defeat against high-flying Birmingham two days earlier.Allitt said: “To come here and get the win is a fantastic result. I’m very impressed with the riders and I think the way we’ve bounced back from Wednesday shows what we are all about.“We came here to do a job and we showed a lot more character, belief and determination so I’m really proud of them tonight.” MILDENHALL promoter Kevin Jolly has called on his remaining riders to step up and see them through their injury crisis.The Fen Tigers suffered a 52-37 home defeat against Birmingham on Sunday – but he knows they must get back to winning ways as Belle Vue visit West Row next Sunday (3.30). “These are difficult times and I wonder what will happen next,” Jolly said. “We have had more than our fair share of injuries and bad news and hopefully things will soon turn our way.“The remaining lads need to step up to the plate like Connor Mountain did today, and really knuckle down to plug the gap. “We have a big meeting next Sunday where we must win to get our League campaign back on track. It won’t be easy but after today we cannot afford any more home defeats, it really is as simple as that!”RYE HOUSE boss Peter Schroeck has backed youngster Connor Locke to come good as the season progresses.Schroeck told the Speedway Star: “The boy is such a trier and he’s getting better and better. We’re confident it will come. You have to support riders at this level, if you don’t there won’t be a future in speedway.“This time last year we had the likes of Alfie Bowtell and Danyon Hume who were struggling. We’re starting from scratch again and building up the team.” STOKE manager Malcolm Vasey could not hide his delight after the Potters claimed a convincing 55-35 away win at Buxton on Sunday.Vasey said: “I’ve been saying for a week or two that if everyone hit form together then someone would suffer a heavy defeat, and that happened on Sunday at Buxton.“It was immaculate performance by all the team with everyone being paid at least for a race win, there was a real good buzz around the pits and you could see the team spirit within the side shine through.“The new lads blended in very well and I feel we are now in for some improved results from now on and today was just the start.”FIXTURE PICTURE…

WEDNESDAY MAY 18:ELITE LEAGUE: King’s Lynn v Swindon 7.30, Poole v Leicester 7.30TRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Birmingham v Belle Vue 7.30

THURSDAY MAY 19:ELITE LEAGUE: Swindon v King’s Lynn 7.30PREMIER LEAGUE: Ipswich v Edinburgh 7.30, Sheffield v Rye House 7.30LEAGUE CUP: Redcar v Workington 7.30NATIONAL TROPHY: Isle of Wight v Mildenhall 7pm

FRIDAY MAY 20:ELITE LEAGUE: Coventry v Lakeside 7.30LEAGUE CUP: Somerset v Plymouth 7.30INTERMEDIATE CHALLENGE: Edinburgh v Belle Vue Colts 7.30

SATURDAY MAY 21:WORLD UNDER-21 QUALIFIER: Belle Vue 7.30ELITE LEAGUE: Lakeside v Coventry 7.30, Leicester v Wolverhampton 7.30LEAGUE CUP: Plymouth v Somerset 7.15NATIONAL TROPHY: Stoke v Buxton 7pmCUMBERLAND PAIRS CHAMPIONSHIP: Workington 7pmSUNDAY MAY 22:PREMIER LEAGUE: Rye House v Edinburgh 6pm, Scunthorpe v Sheffield 6.30PREMIER LEAGUE KO CUP 1st round 1st leg: Glasgow v Redcar 3pmLEAGUE CUP: Peterborough v Ipswich 5pmTRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Mildenhall v Belle Vue 3.30

MONDAY MAY 23:ELITE LEAGUE: Poole v Belle Vue 7.30LEAGUE CUP: Newcastle v Redcar 7.30TRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Cradley v Coventry 7.30CRAYFORD INVICTA PAIRS: Kent 6.30

WEDNESDAY MAY 25:TRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: King’s Lynn v Buxton 7.30NATIONAL LEAGUE KO CUP 1st round 2nd leg: Belle Vue v Stoke 7.30

THURSDAY MAY 26:PREMIER LEAGUE: Sheffield v Berwick 7.30PREMIER LEAGUE KO CUP 1st round 2nd leg: Redcar v Glasgow 7.30TRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Isle of Wight v Belle Vue 7pm

FRIDAY MAY 27:ELITE LEAGUE: Coventry v Belle Vue 7.30, Lakeside v Leicester 8pmPREMIER LEAGUE: Edinburgh v Newcastle 7.30, Plymouth v Workington 7.15

SATURDAY MAY 28:ELITE LEAGUE: Leicester v Lakeside 7.30 PREMIER LEAGUE: Berwick v Redcar 7pm, Workington v Sheffield 7pmTRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Eastbourne v Cradley 7.30, Stoke v Rye House 7pm

SUNDAY MAY 29:PREMIER LEAGUE: Glasgow v Newcastle 3pmTRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Mildenhall v Coventry 3.30NATIONAL LEAGUE KO CUP Q/F 1st leg: Buxton v Cradley 3pm

MONDAY MAY 30:ELITE LEAGUE: Belle Vue v Coventry 12pm, Swindon v Poole 4pm, Wolverhampton v King’s Lynn 7.30PREMIER LEAGUE: Newcastle v Glasgow 7.30, Rye House v Redcar 2pm, Scunthorpe v Peterborough 2pm, Peterborough v Ipswich 8pmTRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Kent v Mildenhall 3pm, Rye House v Eastbourne (follows PL fixture)BRITISH YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIP Round 3 (250cc and 125cc): Scunthorpe 3.30

WEDNESDAY JUNE 1:ELITE LEAGUE: Lakeside v Wolverhampton 7.30, Poole v Swindon 7.30TRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Birmingham v Eastbourne 7.30