BRITISH SPEEDWAY WEEKLY BULLETIN 2023/13

Feature photo:   SHEFFIELD secured match and aggregate points at home to Ipswich – despite a brilliant paid maximum from Witches star Emil Sayfudtinov. The Tigers won the Sports Insure Premiership match 51-39 with a strong all-round showing to overturn a four-point defeat at Foxhall in April.
Photo by: CHARLOTTE FLANIGAN

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

SPORTS INSURE PREMIERSHIP NEWSROUND…

ACE BOOST AT THE TOP
BELLE Vue bounced back from a defeat at Leicester to win 55-35 at home to Peterborough and move seven points clear at the top of the table.
Aces skipper Brady Kurtz scored 14 points from five rides in a strong overall display to extend their home winning run.

Kurtz said: “It’s nice to bang in a big score at home and to see the whole team performing so strongly is very rewarding as well. This was another great night for us.
“We always felt that Peterborough would be one of those teams that we should be putting in a shift against, and after losing at Leicester this is a fantastic boost for the boys.”

PERFECT MAX FOR FRICKE
LEICESTER number 1 Max Fricke broke the track record at the Pidcock Motorcycles Arena, Beaumont Park before completing a full maximum in a terrific Heat 15 against Belle Vue.

The Lions are upwardly mobile with Justin Sedgmen also unbeaten in the clash with the Aces, and they then picked up another away win at King’s Lynn on Monday.
Fricke said: “It was a good night, and it was nice to score 15 points for the team. Everyone chipped in and had a really good meeting, and it’s a really impressive meeting for the whole team against a very tough side in Belle Vue, so it’s definitely a nice one.
“I’ve been feeling a little bit better around here lately. I’m still learning and getting better and better, but I’m starting to find my feet and I feel good on the track.”

WITCHES STILL IN THE HUNT
IPSWICH promoter Chris Louis insists his side can still work their way back into the play-off places in the second half of the season.
Louis is hoping for more consistency from the Witches’ lower order in support of their top two of Jason Doyle and Emil Sayfutdinov.

He said: “I still see no reason this season can’t have an exciting finish for us. There’s certainly no doom and gloom from the management or the team, I can assure you.
“Yes, perhaps we have made it a bit tougher than I would rather it was. But speaking to many fans, I know in the main they are supportive and appreciative of what we’ve done and are trying to do, and they love watching Jason and Emil.

“They enjoy all the wonderful racing antics those two are bringing to the team, but of course it’s currently a little tempered by the fact we are not winning enough meetings. I get that, it’s disappointing.”

GREAT START FOR VADIM
NEW Peterborough signing Vadim Tarasenko made an excellent debut with a 12-point score in the Panthers’ defeat at Belle Vue on Monday.
Tarasenko will race again at Ipswich on Thursday before making his home debut against the Aces next Monday.

Manager Rob Lyon said: “It was a great debut from Vadim, the team has been searching for a No.1 all season and he rode like a No.1 really.
“Unfortunately he didn’t have enough back-up for us to make any sort of impact, but he was really impressive.”

TIGERS THROUGH AFTER SCARE
SHEFFIELD are through to the Premiership KO Cup Final having defended their semi-final advantage over Wolverhampton despite a scare along the way.
The Tigers will now face either Ipswich or Peterborough, with the Witches the favourites, as they look to go back-to-back after last year’s League Cup victory.

Boss Simon Stead said: “With Wolverhampton, we knew we were in for a tough test; they’re a very, very good team with a good balance and this is an incredibly tough place to come to.
“There were some really good performances and lads who came up with big rides at just the right time and that got us out of trouble.”

WORRALL MAX IN CUP EXIT
STEVE Worrall scored an impressive 14+1 paid maximum for Wolverhampton as the Monmore side fell just short of KO Cup progression against Sheffield.

They paid the price for a 54-36 defeat in the first leg but Worrall was delighted to carry his own form into Heat 15.
He said: “I usually work my way through the heats and it tends to be a big gap from my last heat, Heat 10 or 11, to Heat 15. You can kind of take your eye off the ball so to speak, and I always fall a bit short in heat 15.

“But I looked at it a different way, I made sure that we were well prepared and ready, we made a few little changes from my last heat knowing that the track was going to change a little bit and I just tried to keep myself ready.
“Your adrenaline can start to fade off a little bit, your body cools down but I kept myself fired up and we finally got that monkey off my back.”

LYNN SO CLOSE
KING’S Lynn skipper Nicolai Klindt piled up the points again on Monday with a 17-point haul in a narrow defeat against Leicester.

It was a second dramatic meeting at the Adrian Flux Arena in the space of five days after the Stars had beaten Wolverhampton in a Super Heat last Thursday – but the withdrawal of Artem Laguta after four wins against the Lions was a blow.

Klindt said: “I felt we had what it would take to win tonight, but unfortunately Artem got injured, Erik wasn’t what we expected and also Kye found it tough after being our match-winner on Thursday.
“But I think we can be proud of ourselves, we weren’t giving up, we were fighting and it was great to have the support around the stadium. Again, last week the track guys worked very hard on the track and it only got better tonight, so I’m looking forward to the next home meeting.”

THE WEEK AHEAD… Aggregate points are on offer at both Foxhall and Owlerton on Thursday with Ipswich taking a six-point lead into their home clash with Peterborough, whilst Leicester visit Sheffield having won their home match 53-37…

Monday’s action sees leaders Belle Vue visit Peterborough in a quick return from their 55-35 win at the National Speedway Stadum… Wolverhampton face King’s Lynn with the aggregate scores level after their 45-45 draw at the Adrian Flux Arena which was resolved in a Super Heat.

CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP NEWSROUND…

BRUMMIES BRING IN TWO
NEW Birmingham manager Stewart Dickson has made his first moves by bringing Troy Batchelor back into league racing and adding the signing of youngster Sam Hagon at reserve.

They replace long-term injury victim James Wright and Aussie teenager James Pearson – but Dickson has hinted there could be more to come.
He said: “These are just the first two changes as I aim to make Birmingham more competitive, more entertaining to watch and move up that league table.

“I’ll be looking at things closely again on Wednesday night (against Berwick); it’s a very big meeting for us, make no mistake about it, and I’ll continue to see what other options are around if I feel I need to make one or two more few tweaks to get the potential out of this team.”

CHEETAHS WIN AGAINST THE ODDS
OXFORD are top of the Cab Direct Championship after winning at Berwick last Saturday – despite losing Lewis Kerr in a Heat 1 crash.

Skipper Scott Nicholls and Sam Masters were both unbeaten prior to Heat 15 and reserve Henry Atkins came up with two crucial race wins.
Nicholls said: “It’s a big result to win here at Berwick, because they are tough on their own track – it’s not easy come away with a win from here. But to lose Lewi in the first race with an injury and still take the victory makes it an even better result.

“The boys dug in deep after he crashed out. It’s up to me and Sam to score heavily, but it was the performances of Henry, Jordan (Jenkins) and Cam (Heeps) that made all the difference.”

FORD – CRUNCH CLASH AHEAD
POOLE promoter Dan Ford is relishing this Wednesday’s trip to Oxford as two of the sides unbeaten in the early league table clash at Cowley.
Ford said: “I truly believe that we can do better than our two previous visits this year, when we won the BSN by three points and lost the first leg of the KO Cup by just two.

“I know that Stevie [Worrall] has a good more in him than his five and eight paid nine returns of those past visits suggest and likewise Anders [Rowe] and Adam [Roynon] are more than capable of scoring better than their combined total of paid eleven from ten rides.”

BROWN TARGETS MORE
GLASGOW boss Cami Brown is seeking more consistency after his side were taken to a last-heat decider by a battling Edinburgh outfit last week at Ashfield.

Brown said: “We need a bit more consistency. We’ve got Scunthorpe coming next week (Friday June 23) and they will be tough opposition.
“Some of the boys are struggling with changing conditions. That’s the fault of no one but it is a problem we have to solve.”

BEARS LOSE A THRILLER
REDCAR had to be content with one point from a terrific home clash with Poole which went down to a Super Heat finale.
The sides drew 45-45 at the ECCO Arena after a dramatic Heat 15 saw the Pirates’ Steve Worrall disqualified – but Worrall and Richard Lawson got the job done in the additional race by packing in behind the Bears’ skipper Charles Wright.

POSITIVES FOR BANDITS
NEW Berwick boss Kevin Little said he had seen some signs of improvement despite a 44-46 home reverse to Oxford last weekend.
Little said: “Again the reserves did their job and more while Jye (Etheridge) looked very much the old Jye with some powerful and fearless racing while Leon (Flint) played a real captain’s role.

“The decision to rerun Heat 13 even though Sam Masters had handicapped himself by moving proved costly while TJ’s (Thomas Jorgensen) breakdown was one of those things you couldn’t have predicted. In a meeting of such small margins incidents like that are decisive.”

ONE IN, ONE OUT!
JOSH Pickering is set to return to the Edinburgh team for their home clash with Birmingham this Friday as the Monarchs look to improve a shaky Armadale record this year.

But Paco Castagna has suffered a dislocated shoulder and cracked humerus while racing in Italy on Sunday, and could be out for around a month – whilst the club await an update on the fitness of Craig Cook.

GREAT PLACE TO RACE
SCUNTHORPE star Jake Allen expects both entertainment and match wins to keep on flowing for the Scorpions who continued to impress with a big win over Plymouth last week.

Allen said: “Scunthorpe is a good racetrack. When it starts to get slick towards the end, you can ride it anywhere – you just have to try to make sure you keep your speed up.
“I had a good race with Dan (Gilkes) in my last one and it was nice to win a race like that – I’m sure there will be plenty more of them this year.
“We all get on well and help each other, and there’s a good team spirit in the pits. I’m excited to see what we can do by the end of the season.”

THE WEEK AHEAD… Oxford look to extend their unbeaten start to the league campaign when they visit Plymouth on Tuesday and then face a crunch home clash with Poole just over 24 hours later… Troy Batchelor and Sam Hagon make their home debuts for Birmingham against Berwick… the Brummies also visit Edinburgh on Friday, whilst Plymouth make the long trip to Redcar… two in-form teams meet at Ashfield as Glasgow host Scunthorpe.

NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE NEWSROUND…

JAMES STARS FOR CUBS
LEICESTER youngster Max James piled up a stunning 15+1 haul at Edinburgh on Saturday to help the defending NDL champions to a 47-43 away win.

Lion Cubs manager Dave Howard said: “Max had the meeting of his career so far, and it was an absolutely incredible performance by him.
“He won races by coming from behind, and later on in the meeting he won from the gate as well. He was just so confident on this track, he said he’d ridden it a couple of times before and liked it, but the way he went round people, and he beat Adam Roynon from the back, was fantastic and he’s coming on so fast.”

BIG WIN FOR ROYALS
KENT favourite Ben Morley and fellow heat-leader Nathan Ablitt both scored 13+1 in the Royals’ 54-36 home win over Belle Vue – which featured four 5-1s in the last four races!

Morley said: “It was an awesome performance from the boys today with a good win over a very strong Belle Vue side.
“It was close for most of the meeting, but we pulled it out of the bag with four big 5-1s in the final four races and come out with the vital two league points for the team that we needed.”

CLEGG TO THE MAX
MAX Clegg marked his return to the NDL by scoring a 15-point maximum at home to Leicester – but it wasn’t enough for overall victory as the Lion Cubs collected a 47-43 win.

Clegg said: “I surprised myself a little by doing so well, especially as it is four weeks I think since I had last ridden. I felt a bit rusty in my first ride but settled down after that.
“Leicester have a really good team so I think we did well to run them so close without Jacob Hook in the team.”

COLTS MISS OUT
BELLE Vue co-boss Graham Goodwin admitted there was a degree of frustration arising from an 18-point defeat at Kent – especially as the scores had been 34-32 with just four races remaining.

The Colts also lost Luke Muff to concussion after a crash early in the meeting.
Goodwin said: “He’s ok and he stuck around to help the boys out. It was a big ask for the rest of them after that, but we kept up the pressure and even at Heat 11 we still believed we could win.

“Unfortunately, things just completely unravelled for us in those last four races and we’re very disappointed about that. We know we can and should have done better than we did.”

THE WEEK AHEAD…  Leicester look to complete the double over Edinburgh when the sides meet in the East Midlands on Saturday… Workington host Oxford in a big clash of third versus second in the league table.

FIXTURE PICTURE…

TUESDAY JUNE 20:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP: Plymouth v Oxford 7pm

WEDNESDAY JUNE 21:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP: Birmingham v Berwick 7.30, Oxford v Poole 7.30

THURSDAY JUNE 22:
SPORTS INSURE PREMIERSHIP R1: Ipswich (48) v Peterborough (42), Sheffield (37) v Leicester (53) 7.30

FRIDAY JUNE 23:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP: Edinburgh (54) v Birmingham (36) 7.30, Glasgow v Scunthorpe 7.30, Redcar v Plymouth 7.30

SATURDAY JUNE 24:
NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE: Leicester (47) v Edinburgh (43) 7pm, Workington v Oxford 3pm

MONDAY JUNE 26:
SPORTS INSURE PREMIERSHIP R2: Peterborough (35) v Belle Vue (55) 7.30, Wolverhampton (45) v King’s Lynn (45) 7.30

WEDNESDAY JUNE 28:
BRITISH UNDER-19 FINAL: Birmingham 7.30

THURSDAY JUNE 29:
PREMIERSHIP PAIRS: Leicester 7.30

FRIDAY JUNE 30:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP: Scunthorpe v Oxford 7.30
BSN SERIES FINAL 1st leg: Glasgow v Poole 7.30
NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE: Edinburgh v Berwick 7.30
JULIE LEWIS MEMORIAL: Redcar 7.30

SATURDAY JULY 1:
NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE: Berwick v Edinburgh 7pm

SUNDAY JULY 2:
NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE: Kent v Oxford 12pm
ULRICH OSTERGAARD FAREWELL: Peterborough 4pm

MONDAY JULY 3: 
SPORTS INSURE PREMIERSHIP R2: Belle Vue v Wolverhampton 7.30
SPORTS INSURE PREMIERSHIP R1: Sheffield v Peterborough 7.30

TUESDAY JULY 4:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP: Plymouth v Berwick 7pm