BRITISH SPEEDWAY OCTOBER 15

                                         Photo courtesy Jeff Davies:      Nicholls. Kennett. 

Date: Friday October 15, 2021

(SPEEDWAY 1)

PETERBOROUGH were crowned Premiership Champions with a ten-point aggregate win over Belle Vue in a memorable Grand Final.
The Panthers won the second leg 51-39 in front of a packed house at the East of England Arena, turning around their two-point deficit in Manchester on Monday.

The Aces had doubled their overall advantage after four races of the return, but the home side dominated the mid-stages of the meeting with three 5-1s between Heats 6 and 10.
Skipper Scott Nicholls and Rising Star youngster Dan Bewley clinched the title with a 4-2 in Heat 14 after the Panthers had briefly been delayed by a stunning ride by Aces No.1 Dan Bewley to come from the back and win Heat 13.

Bjarne Pedersen marked his last official meeting before retirement by top-scoring with 13+1, whilst Michael Palm Toft again went through the pain barrier with 12+1 and Nicholls added 10+1 as he captained a top-league winning team for the third time.
Bewley scored an outstanding 15 for the Aces with five wins after a Heat 1 last place, and their own Rising Star Tom Brennan raced superbly for 11 points from seven rides.

Panthers boss Rob Lyon said: “It feels fantastic. It’s been a juggle ever since Ulrich (Ostergaard) was injured and we’ve been covering him in all of our matches, but we got there, we got over the line and we deserve it – the boys have been absolutely fantastic all year.

“We knew all about Belle Vue’s record here, but whichever way you looked it, whichever decision you made, it was always going to be a difficult tie with four good teams in the play-offs.
“But we had to believe in our own ability and take advantage of what we felt was the right thing to do.
“We saw again tonight how we rallied in mid-meeting, we started to edge away, and we had enough in the tank to see us over the line.”

(SPEEDWAY 2)

BELLE Vue boss Mark Lemon accepted the best team had won the Grand Final after his side again had to settle for the Premiership runners-up spot.
The Aces were four points up on aggregate after five races of Thursday’s second leg at Peterborough, but were then unable to match the all-round strength of the home side.

Lemon said: “We gave it everything we had tonight. It was a classic Final that came to a head in Heat 14.
“We still had the chance to go to golden heats after Tom (Brennan) and Charles (Wright) gated on a 5-1, but sadly that didn’t happen after Charles suffered an engine failure.

“Missing Brady (Kurtz) definitely hurt us. We only scored four points from R/R but nevertheless the boys put in a solid campaign, we just didn’t hit form at the right time.
“I can’t fault the guys in 2021. Their fortitude, desire and commitment all season has been brilliant. They worked as a cohesive group, and they deserved better.

“Full respect to Peterborough. They were the better team on the night, and we offer our congratulations to them as Premiership champions.”

(SPEEDWAY 3)

EDINBURGH and Glasgow are set for a massive two nights of racing at Armadale – in two different competitions!
The Monarchs and the Tigers meet tonight (Friday) in the second leg of their KO Cup semi-final, with the visitors holding a 16-point lead from last weekend’s clash at Ashfield.
And then tomorrow evening they race the first leg of their Championship play-off semi-final at the same venue.
Edinburgh star Josh Pickering said: “I’m not worried whether it is the Cup or the league, we’re here to win everything.
“We won’t bother thinking about the 16-point deficit on Friday, just go out to win every race.
“I’ve been here five years and we haven’t won anything in that time, so I want to put that right. The fans are here cold, wind, rain supporting us, so I want to win for them.”

Glasgow boss Cami Brown said: “Scottish derbies are always special but there has rarely been so much on the line for matches between Glasgow and Edinburgh as there is over the next week.
“The last time these matches meant so much was in 2015 when we made two Finals together, and I can still remember the tension and the atmosphere they generated.

“We might have a big lead in the Cup meeting as things stand, but it’ll count for nothing if we let our guard down. We’ve won at Edinburgh already this season so we know we can do it, but it’s still one of the toughest places to go.”

(SPEEDWAY 4)

MILDENHALL’S Luke Ruddick has announced his retirement from the sport.
The 23-year-old, who first raced for the Fen Tigers in 2015, suffered a heavy crash recently at West Row and has elected to call time on his career. He has also ridden for Coventry and Leicester in the NDL, and for Edinburgh and Plymouth at Championship level.

Ruddick said: “I’ve enjoyed every minute of my years in speedway and leave with some great memories, but my recent crash made me take a hard look at my future.
“I have recently started my own business, which is going well, and I felt now was the right time to move on to the next part of my life. I am still sore from my crash and have some slight issues with my shoulder that helped me make my decision.

“I would like to thank the Mildenhall owners for their understanding and support and everyone at Mildenhall Speedway, especially the fans and sponsors, who have supported me during my time at Mildenhall.
“The club has always felt like home, and I will be at Kent on Tuesday helping where I can and I intend to remain part of the club in the future off the track.
“I would also like to thank the management and supporters of my other clubs for their help and support over the years.”

(FIXTURES)

SATURDAY OCTOBER 16:
FIM SPEEDWAY OF NATIONS FINAL 1: Belle Vue 4pm
CHAMPIONSHIP PLAY-OFF S/F 1st leg: Edinburgh v Glasgow 7pm, 2nd leg: Leicester v Poole 7.30

SUNDAY OCTOBER 17:

FIM SPEEDWAY OF NATIONS FINAL 2: Belle Vue 4pm