BRITISH SPEEDWAY WEEKLY BULLETIN 2022/16

Ipswich remain top of the Premiership table after another week of top-class action. The Witches comfortable beat Sheffield 54-36 last Thursday at Foxhall and lead the top-flight standings by two points ahead of Belle Vue.
Photo by: JEFF HIGGOTT

HERE’S our latest soundbytes and fixtures from around the tracks up and down the country.

PREMIERSHIP SOUNDBYTES…

BELLE VUE
“There’s still a lot of work to do to confirm our place in the top four but with every meeting, and with results like this, the confidence is building and I feel like we’re definitely on target.”
Aces star Max Fricke scored a paid maximum in Monday’s thumping 63-27 home win over Peterborough which very much continued their current dominant form around the National Speedway Stadium.
NEXT HOME: Sports Insure British Final Championship, Mon Aug 1
NEXT AWAY: King’s Lynn, Mon Aug 22
 
IPSWICH
“We have got a couple of weeks off as a team now and there are pros and cons to that. We have got a few injuries but we are in a great run of form so it would be nice to be riding together as a team before then.

The boys will all still be riding in other leagues and I’m sure once we get back together as a team at King’s Lynn we’ll be back to the same atmosphere as we have had tonight.”

Witches boss Ritchie Hawkins was delighted with the team effort to beat Sheffield last Thursday – but the club have now suffered a setback with injury over the weekend to Erik Riss.
NEXT HOME: King’s Lynn, Thur Aug 11
NEXT AWAY: King’s Lynn, Thur Aug 4
 
KING’S LYNN
“We were overshooting bend two too often and allowing their riders to come up the inside of us, which is disappointing because we spoke about the importance of that.

But it’s not over yet. I think we’re going to go on a bit of a run with hopefully our new signing to come in for Ipswich at home – but tonight is tough.”
Stars boss Alex Brady insists brighter times lie ahead after a frustrating defeat at Wolverhampton on Monday, with a new face expected in the team imminently.
NEXT HOME: Ipswich, Thur Aug 4
NEXT AWAY: Sheffield, Mon Aug 8

PETERBOROUGH
“It was a difficult night. We lost the coin toss for gate positions and clearly one and three are better here, certainly early doors, and that set us off on the wrong tone unfortunately. The boys battled hard, but it’s a tough place to come nowadays.

Fair play to Belle Vue, they were the better team again and I’m sure they will be in the play-offs and be a threat to win the title.”
Boss Rob Lyon gave credit to Belle Vue for their 63-27 win over his side on Monday, with the Panthers’ play-off hopes fading and injury problems continuing to affect Michael Palm Toft and Hans Andersen.
NEXT HOME: Sheffield, Mon Aug 15
NEXT AWAY: Wolverhampton, Mon Aug 8
 
SHEFFIELD
“They caught us at our weakest with a key rider down and we caught them when they were overstrength if anything. Unfortunately, it’s another result that has now been and gone, there’s nothing we can do about it now so there’s no point dwelling on it.”

Tigers boss Simon Stead urges his side to park their disappointing result at Ipswich last Thursday and refocus for the resumption of their league campaign next month.
NEXT HOME: Wolverhampton, Thur Aug 4
NEXT AWAY: Peterborough, Mon Aug 15
 
WOLVERHAMPTON
“Not only us getting the win, but them leaving with nothing is pretty big when you look at the table now. We always knew it was going to be tough without Nick (Morris – illness) but we worked hard as a team and I’m proud of the boys tonight.”

Skipper Sam Masters praised a good effort from a six-man Wolves side to defeat King’s Lynn 49-41 at Monmore on Monday.
NEXT HOME: Peterborough, Mon Aug 8
NEXT AWAY: Sheffield, Thur Aug 4
 
CHAMPIONSHIP SOUNDBYTES…

BERWICK
“Points at Leicester were always an outside bet but we now have to make sure that we put it all together against Plymouth, Scunthorpe and Birmingham. And there’s the small matter of a visit from Glasgow to take into consideration too.”
Bandits boss Gary Flint wants his side to bounce back quickly from a tough weekend, with important points still to race for in their remaining league matches.
NEXT HOME: Glasgow (CJL), Sat July 30
NEXT AWAY: Birmingham, Wed Aug 10

BIRMINGHAM
“We were disappointed with the way things went at Oxford, we asked these lads for a response and they gave it us. I was super proud of the way the riders turned the meeting around and all three of our guests were absolutely superb tonight.”

The Brummies bounced back from a heavy defeat at Oxford to record a second successive home win in the Championship Jubilee League as Laurence Rogers’ side overcame the Cheetahs in a last-heat decider at Perry Barr.
NEXT HOME: Poole (CJL), Wed July 27
NEXT AWAY: Poole (CJL), Fri July 29
 
EDINBURGH
“I had a bike malfunction, but that’s not an excuse, I couldn’t get into things early but I made a great gate in my last to finish on a win. When you haveSam and Josh, those boys were unreal and it keeps everyone going as well as we are never out of it.”

Monarchs star Kye Thomson paid tribute to top two Sam Masters and Josh Pickering after a dramatic turnaround victory at Berwick in the Championship Jubilee League.
NEXT HOME: Glasgow (CJL), Fri July 29
NEXT AWAY: Glasgow (CJL), Sun July 31
 
GLASGOW
“We’ve got the track the way we wanted it and the boys are really enjoying their racing here. The team have done that at home in the last three or four matches, we’ve destroyed Leicester, Redcar and now Berwick. That’s the way we want to continue.”

Tigers boss Cami Brown tells glasgowtigers.co.uk his side are feeling ultra-confident about their racing at Ashfield after a string of strong recent results.
NEXT HOME: Edinburgh (CJL), Sun July 31
NEXT AWAY: Edinburgh (CJL), Fri July 29
 
LEICESTER
“It’s a great result, and it’s a great season all in all. To finish top is one of the main goals, and it takes a bit of pressure off us now. The main job was to get three points, and we can sit back a bit now and see what happens with the other teams in the play-offs.”

Lions skipper Kyle Howarth led his side to a 55-35 win over Berwick on Sunday for a result which confirms they will end the regular stage of the campaign as league leaders ahead of the play-offs.
NEXT HOME: Redcar (CJL), Sat July 30
NEXT AWAY: TBC
 
OXFORD
“Jack has experienced some swelling on his wrist since returning to the saddle. He is a rider with huge potential and rushing him back will only risk causing more serious long-term damage.”
Cheetahs boss Peter Schroeck explains why Jack Thomas is absent after making his comeback from two broken wrists in last week’s narrow defeat at Birmingham.
NEXT HOME: Plymouth (CJL), Wed July 27
NEXT AWAY: Plymouth (CJL), Tues July 26

PLYMOUTH
“The Westcolour Gladiators will understandably now be focussing on getting riders fit and match fit for the return of the Championship league programme and play-offs, and with three home fixtures in the league and two away still to race in August, they will be hopeful to see the return of Michael Palm Toft and Dan Gilkes in the coming weeks and await further news updates from Hans Andersen and Edward Kennett.”
Plymouth-speedway.com offers an update on a difficult injury situation for the Gladiators, who are without the majority of their first choice team at this stage of the summer.
NEXT HOME: Oxford (CJL), Tues July 26
NEXT AWAY: Oxford (CJL), Wed July 27
 
POOLE
“We are rolling with confidence now and putting some proper team performances together with everyone chipping in and that is what is getting us these big wins. I think we are hitting form just at the right time and we now just have to keep the ball rolling.”

Pirates star Richard Lawson believes they have come through their recent mini-slump and are now very much back on track ahead of the business end of the campaign.
NEXT HOME: Birmingham (CJL), Fri July 29
NEXT AWAY: Birmingham (CJL), Wed July 27
 
REDCAR
The Bears have announced the signing of youngster Archie Freeman as an asset of the club, having become unattached following the recent closure of North-East rivals Newcastle.
NEXT HOME: Scunthorpe (CJL), Fri Aug 5
NEXT AWAY: Scunthorpe (CJL), Fri July 29
 
SCUNTHORPE
“I had a bit of a steady night for myself, but we win as a team and lose as a team. Zaine (Kennedy) hit some real good form at reserve tonight, which was good to see, while Dougie (Ryan Douglas) was Dougie – he’s one of the best No 1s in the league, if not the best.”

Skipper Simon Lambert paid tribute to two key riders as the Scorpions held on to defeat Leicester 46-44 in a close-fought Championship Jubilee League match at the Eddie Wright Raceway.
NEXT HOME: Redcar (CJL), Fri July 29
NEXT AWAY: Redcar (CJL), Fri Aug 5
 
NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE SOUNDBYTES…

ARMADALE
NEXT HOME: Plymouth, Sat Aug 6
NEXT AWAY: Oxford, Wed Aug 3

BELLE VUE
“We did feel for Mildenhall, being struck down to just four riders in the end, but that’s speedway sometimes and we had to capitalise on the opportunity. We’ve said many times about the importance of accumulating points away from home and this result this afternoon was a step in the right direction to the play-offs.”

Co-boss Graham Goodwin underlined the importance of the Colts taking their chances to win 47-41 at Mildenhall last Sunday.
NEXT HOME: Kent, Fri Aug 5
NEXT AWAY: Oxford, Wed Aug 10

BERWICK
The Bullets were eliminated from the KO Cup having suffered home and away defeats at the hands of Leicester, and are now preparing to resume their play-off bid against struggling Plymouth early next month.
NEXT HOME: Plymouth, Sat Aug 6
NEXT AWAY: Plymouth, Tues Aug 9
 
KENT
“For the Royals it was a tales of misfortune and points disappearing, with a spate of falls and retirements restricting the scoring.”
The Royals saw their unbeaten home NDL record ended by Oxford on Sunday, as the Chargers came away from Iwade with a 47-42 victory.
NEXT HOME: Mildenhall, Sun Aug 21
NEXT AWAY: Mildenhall, Sun July 31 

LEICESTER
“The first thing was to score the 28 points we needed to get to the Final, but we were ahead from Heat 1 and ahead all through the meeting, and it’s great to keep the away momentum going.”
Dave Howard’s Lion Cubs are through to the KO Cup Final where they will face Mildenhall, after completing the formality of aggregate victory over Berwick last weekend.
NEXT HOME: NDL Pairs, Sat Aug 20
NEXT AWAY: Belle Vue, Fri Aug 19

MILDENHALL
“I’m having a first skid since my recuperation from the operation today. I need to get some practice in so that I can see how it feels and get close to when I can make a decision on my return.”
Fen Tigers star Ryan Kinsley offers some hope to the crowd that he could be closing in on a return to ease their mounting injury problems.
NEXT HOME: Kent, Sun July 31
NEXT AWAY: Kent, Sun Aug 21
 
OXFORD
“Kent’s team is quite top heavy, with riders who bring home the big points, especially later in the meeting. On the other hand, I think our team has quite a nice balance. When I say to the lads ‘no last places’, it’s something we can achieve and then end up on the winning side.”
Chargers boss Peter Schroeck saw a plan come together at Iwade on Sunday as his side boosted their play-off hopes with an important 47-42 away win.
NEXT HOME: Armadale, Wed Aug 3
NEXT AWAY: Mildenhall, Sun Aug 28

PLYMOUTH
The Centurions have redeclared their side with the experienced Adam Roynon replacing Ben Phillips for another spell with the club he last represented in 2018.
NEXT HOME: Berwick, Tues Aug 9
NEXT AWAY: Armadale, Sat Aug 6

FIXTURE PICTURE…

TUESDAY JULY 26:
CHAMPIONSHIP JUBILEE LEAGUE: Plymouth v Oxford 7pm

WEDNESDAY JULY 27:
CHAMPIONSHIP JUBILEE LEAGUE: Birmingham v Poole 7.30, Oxford v Plymouth 7.30

FRIDAY JULY 29:
CHAMPIONSHIP JUBILEE LEAGUE: Edinburgh v Glasgow 7.30, Poole v Birmingham 7.30, Scunthorpe v Redcar 7.30

SATURDAY JULY 30:
CHAMPIONSHIP JUBILEE LEAGUE: Berwick v Glasgow 7pm, Leicester v Redcar 7pm

SUNDAY JULY 31:
CHAMPIONSHIP JUBILEE LEAGUE: Glasgow v Edinburgh 3pm
NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE: Mildenhall v Kent 3pm

MONDAY AUGUST 1:
SPORTS INSURE BRITISH FINAL CHAMPIONSHIP: Belle Vue 7.30

TUESDAY AUGUST 2:
CHAMPIONSHIP: Plymouth v Birmingham 7pm
CHAMPIONSHIP JUBILEE LEAGUE: Oxford v Poole 7.30

WEDNESDAY AUGUST 3:
CHAMPIONSHIP JUBILEE LEAGUE: Poole v Oxford 7.30
NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE: Oxford v Armadale 7.30

THURSDAY AUGUST 4:
PREMIERSHIP: King’s Lynn v Ipswich 7.30, Sheffield v Wolverhampton 7.30

 FRIDAY AUGUST 5:
CHAMPIONSHIP: Edinburgh v Plymouth 7.30, Glasgow v Birmingham 7.30
CHAMPIONSHIP JUBILEE LEAGUE: Redcar v Scunthorpe 7.30
NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE: Belle Vue v Kent 7.30
BRITISH YOUTH CHAMPIONSIP (125cc/150cc): Belle Vue 6pm

SATURDAY AUGUST 6:
CHAMPIONSHIP: Berwick v Plymouth 6.30
CHAMPIONSHIP JUBILEE LEAGUE: Leicester v Scunthorpe 7pm
NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE: Armadale v Plymouth 2.30, Berwick v Plymouth (follows Champ fixture)
 
MONDAY AUGUST 8:
PREMIERSHIP: Belle Vue v Ipswich 7.30, Sheffield v King’s Lynn 7.30, Wolverhampton v Peterborough 7.30

TUESDAY AUGUST 9:
NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE: Plymouth v Berwick 7pm