BRITISH SPEEDWAY OCTOBER 4, 2024

(SPEEDWAY 1)
 
ACES’ EMPHATIC GF WIN!

BELLE Vue are celebrating their second top-flight title in three years after winning at Leicester in the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership Grand Final.
The Aces, who already led by 18 points heading to the East Midlands for the second leg, took a 49-41 victory on the night for an emphatic 26-point aggregate success.

World No.4 Dan Bewley completed a sensational unbeaten Grand Final performance with his second 15-point maximum in succession, whilst captain Brady Kurtz was also unbeaten with 11+1 at the Pidcock Motorcycles Arena, Beaumont Park.
The visitors had the title in the bag with four races remaining when Kurtz and Norick Blodorn took a 4-2 in Heat 11, and they went on to win on the night thanks to 5-1s in Heats 13 and 15.

Kurtz said: “It’s been tough all season, but the boys really stepped things up at Leicester and did the business. I mean, what a club and what a team! It really has been a team effort.
“I think a lot of people maybe wrote us off before the play-offs and there was that feeling of us being something of the underdog, but I think that just spurred us on to step things up.

“That’s what it takes when it comes to play-off speedway and it was awesome to show what we can do in the semi-final against Sheffield, and now here at Leicester as well.
“We can’t thank the management enough, Lemmo [Mark Lemon], the owners, everyone who works at the club and the supporters, and it’s nice to finally have our trophy back.”

(SPEEDWAY 2)

LEICESTER manager Stewart Dickson offered his congratulations to new champions Belle Vue after missing out in the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership Grand Final.
The Lions had been the league’s form team in late summer as they marched into the top four thanks to a ten-match unbeaten run.

But they were unable to replicate that level of performance in the play-offs, and after edging out Ipswich in a close semi-final they were beaten both home and away by the Aces in the title decider.
Dickson said: “Of course we’re disappointed. We kind of knew from Heat 2 onwards that it wasn’t going to be our night.
“We did want to win our home leg, that’s for sure, but Belle Vue did ride well.
“I have to congratulate them, they were the better team over the two legs and they thoroughly deserved it.”

 (SPEEDWAY 3)

OXFORD manager Peter Schroeck is relishing the prospect of a rare Saturday meeting at Cowley as his side face Poole in the Cab Direct Championship Grand Final.
Bad weather has delayed the title fight so far but the first leg now takes place this weekend, with the two sides having already raced several hard-fought encounters this season.

Schroeck said: “We believe the Saturday date for our leg of the Final could really work. Many people won’t have to dash from work, while it gives more opportunity for the Poole fans to travel up.
“I also hope we attract new people and new families along, intrigued to see what all the fuss is about and we hope to put a fantastic show for them.

“The Grand Final is a huge occasion, and for Poole to be our opponents only makes it bigger, due to the proud history of both clubs.
“There’s also quite a rivalry between the two clubs – this isn’t the first time Oxford and Poole have been in a battle to decide the league championship.”

(SPEEDWAY 4)

GREAT Britain star Tom Brennan has been called up for the Grand Prix Challenge at Pardubice today (Friday).
Four qualifying places into next year’s full GP series are available from the Czech Republic venue, with Brennan seeking to join Robert Lambert and Dan Bewley in the 2025 World Championship.

The Birmingham and Poole rider had finished one place adrift of qualification for the Challenge when he rode at Abensberg in May, but the line-up has since been amended with other riders already securing their GP place via other means.
Belle Vue’s Australian duo Brady Kurtz and Jaimon Lidsey are included along with Leicester skipper Max Fricke, King’s Lynn’s Jan Kvech on home territory, and Edinburgh favourite Paco Castagna.

Brennan said: “It’s something I didn’t think I’d be part of, so anything we get from it is a bonus.
“I can realistically dream of making it to the GP series. It’s probably too far away from our expectations for this year.
“But I’m going there to win five races and see where that takes me. If I go there open-minded and calm, I can definitely be dangerous.”

(SPEEDWAY 5)

OXFORD youngster Luke Killeen was the highest-placed Great Britain rider in Thursday’s FIM European Under-19 Final at Herxheim.
Killeen put in a gritty performance with a score of seven points for a 10th place finish, whilst Luke Harrison and Ashton Boughen finished with scores of three and two points respectively to finish the evening in 14th and 15th places.

Ukraine’s Nazar Parnitskyi was crowned the new European Under-19 Champion after facing a run-off with Denmark’s Bastian Pedersen after both riders had tied on 13 points.
The 2024 SGP2 (World Under-21) Champion Wiktor Przyjemski claimed the bronze medal with a score of 12 points after Denmark’s Mikkel Andersen was cruelly disqualified from his fourth heat, and he therefore finished just outside the rostrum places on 11.

The three British riders now head back to the UK in a bid to add their own British Championship to their CV over the weekend, as they all compete in the British Under-19 Final at Oxford on Sunday afternoon – with Killeen and Boughen in action for the Cheetahs in the Cab Direct Championship Grand Final the previous evening.

(FIXTURES)

SATURDAY OCTOBER 5:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP GRAND FINAL 1st leg: Oxford v Poole 7.30

SUNDAY OCTOBER 6:
BRITISH UNDER-19 FINAL: Oxford 3pm

MONDAY OCTOBER 7:
WSRA NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE: Belle Vue (50) v Sheffield (39) 7.30
 
WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 9:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP GRAND FINAL 2nd leg: Poole v Oxford 7.30