BRITISH SPEEDWAY MARCH 24, 2025

(SPEEDWAY 1)

MEDIA DAY GETS SEASON OFF TO GREAT START

ALL 49 riders involved in the 2025 ROWE Motor Oil Premiership were present at a highly successful Media Day season launch at Oxford on Sunday.
The riders and club managements were joined by invited guests, members of the press, sponsors and officials at the start of what promises to be a classic campaign of racing.

Centrepoint of the day was a live streamed press conference hosted by TNT Sports presenter Abi Stephens as the riders looked ahead to the new season.
The teams all visited a number of ‘stations’ throughout the event to fulfil the needs of broadcast and written media, as well assisting with content creation for social media.

Premiership CEO Phil Morris said: “This was our second pre-season Media Day building on the success of Belle Vue last year, and I’d like to thank everyone at Oxford for their assistance in making it possible.
“Every single rider was here, all 49 of them, which I’m really pleased with and we really appreciate the fact that everyone is buying in to what we’re looking to do.

“I’m also very grateful for the help from all the volunteers who gave up their time to make sure the day ran smoothly.
“It’s all about raising the profile of the sport, which we can continue to do throughout the year, and to be able to welcome our sponsors, broadcast partners and guests to such an event was very pleasing.”

(SPEEDWAY 2)

IPSWICH newcomer Tom Brennan added his name to the list of Ben Fund Bonanza winners with victory at Oxford on Sunday.
Brennan had to go through the semi-final to make it through to the deciding race, where he was holding off Charles Wright before the Spires and Redcar rider crashed out on the last lap.

That enabled new Birmingham skipper Tobiasz Musielak to take second place overall whilst Swedish superstar Fredrik Lindgren was third.
Brennan said: “This is such a good cause, and I would never ever say no to this meeting. These guys do some amazing work that goes unnoticed, and everybody’s support goes such a long way.
“To get such a good line-up is amazing, and to come away with the win feels even better.”

(SPEEDWAY 3)

SPEEDWAY Riders’ Benevolent Fund Chairman Paul Ackroyd paid tribute to all involved in a successful Bonanza staging at Oxford on Sunday.
The full schedule was completed despite inclement weather with rain during parts of the meeting, and the event attracted support from all over the country.

Ackroyd said: “The minute the riders put their helmets on, they gave it their all, and it was very evident that they wanted to go out and give the fans a really good meeting.
“We were delighted that Jamie (Courtney) and his management team volunteered the stadium – we’ve always wanted to come here, and from the minute Oxford re-opened a few years ago it was on my radar to persuade them to let us hold the event here.

“They have been amazing people to work with, so generous with their time, and the back-up they’ve supported us with is unbelievable.
“A big thank you to everyone for supporting the riders’ Ben Fund, because it’s the Fund that supports them.”

(SPEEDWAY 4)

BELLE Vue and Ipswich kick off a heavyweight Premiership KO Cup quarter-final clash when they meet at the National Speedway Stadium tonight (Monday).
The Witches won the silverware in 2023 and were defeated Finalists last year, but their record in Manchester in the recent past has been indifferent.

Zach Cook makes his debut for the Aces in a familiar looking line-up for the league champions whilst Tom Brennan is the major new signing for the visitors, and he makes his first appearance on one of his former home tracks.
Belle Vue boss Mark Lemon said: “Chris Louis and Ritchie Hawkins have established Ipswich as one of the powerhouse sides in recent years with the always excellent Jason Doyle and Emil Sayfutdinov leading the club.

“We know for a fact that all those guys know the quickest way round the NSS. But it’s always important to believe in your own strengths. We also have so much ability and I’m excited to see our new boys of 2025 in action as a team for the first time.
“They are ready for the tough challenge and I’m very confident they will come through it. All our boys looked excellent last week and they are ready.”

Ipswich manager Ritchie Hawkins said: “It is the toughest draw we could have got in the cup and the toughest place we could go to start the season.
“We know it is the only place we didn’t win at last year and the only place we have never won. It is two of the best teams in the competition, so we know how difficult it is going to be.

“We have got a lot of riders coming back from injuries after last year so it could be tough, but we also have a great line-up. Belle Vue have been extremely successful over the last few years although they have started slowly in the past, so maybe now is the time for us to catch them cold and finally get a win at the National Speedway Stadium.”

BELLE VUE: Brady Kurtz, Norick Blodorn, Jaimon Lidsey, Zach Cook, Dan Bewley, Tate Zischke, Jake Mulford.
IPSWICH: Jason Doyle, Danny King, Adam Ellis, Tom Brennan, Emil Sayfutdinov, Dan Thompson, Jordan Jenkins.

(SPEEDWAY 5)

BIRMINGHAM’S new-look team face their first test with a Midlands derby clash against Leicester in the KO Cup quarter-finals at Perry Barr tonight (Monday).

The Brummies have changed all seven riders from 2024 and are now led by a spearhead of Tobiasz Musielak, Michael Jepsen Jensen and Matej Zagar, with Keynan Rew joining from Ipswich.
In contrast, Leicester track a side with few changes as Kyle Howarth and Drew Kemp both rejoin after previous spells with the Lions, although their Cup record since moving into the top-fight has been disappointing.

Birmingham boss Chris Adams said: “I think it’s going to be a really good contest over the two legs on aggregate.
“Leicester are looking strong on paper again and we’re going into this season with the expectation that we’re better placed to win more speedway meetings.

“We’ll see how they bed in on Monday but hopefully we can put ourselves in a decent position ahead of the second leg.”
Leicester manager Stewart Dickson said: “It wasn’t a fluke that we won all the matches we did last season, the riders were riding to their ability, and that’s why I brought as many of them back as possible, because I believe in them.

“But we do need to be on our guard against Birmingham first and foremost. We want to get through in this tie and improve our KO Cup record, so we have to put in a performance on Monday so we can bring them back and win overall on aggregate at home.”

BIRMINGHAM: Tobiasz Musielak, Jonas Jeppesen, Michael Jepsen Jensen, Keynan Rew, Matej Zagar, Antti Vuolas, Jason Edwards.

LEICESTER: Max Fricke, Luke Becker, Ryan Douglas, Kyle Howarth, Sam Masters, Drew Kemp, Sam Hagon.

(SPEEDWAY 6)

KING’S Lynn will have two former Oxford riders making their debuts against their former club when the sides meet in the KO Cup at the Adrian Flux Arena tonight (Monday).
Chris Harris and Rising Star Ashton Boughen both rode for the Spires last season but have now made the switch to Norfolk as part of a revamped Stars line-up for 2025, which also includes Ben Cook and Richard Lawson.

In place of Harris and Boughen, the Cowley club have recruited Peter Kildemand and Francis Gusts, whilst new skipper Maciej Janowski is a former Lynn rider and impressed at the AFA last season.
King’s Lynn manager Rob Lyon said: “You know what you’re going to get from Magic and Rohan Tungate, they are pretty good around here, and Charles (Wright) is experienced and he’s been around the scene for a long time.

“But I feel their newcomers are maybe going to be the difference in the early stages as to how well they perform as a team.
“We’ve got to do our job at the end of the day though, and if we do our job then hopefully it will be enough to go through.”
Spires manager Peter Schroeck said: “The lads need to settle themselves quickly and put on a good display to give ourselves a chance to progress in the Cup.”

KING’S LYNN: Ben Cook, Jan Kvech, Nicolai Klindt, Niels-Kristian Iversen, Richard Lawson, Chris Harris, Ashton Boughen.

OXFORD: Rohan Tungate, Peter Kildemand, Charles Wright, Erik Riss, Maciej Janowski, Francis Gusts, Luke Killeen.

(SPEEDWAY 7)

LEICESTER have announced their hugely successful NDL team manager Dave Howard will be unable to continue in his role on health grounds.
Howard oversaw three title wins for the Lion Cubs in 2019, 2022 and 2024 along with numerous other trophies and a remarkable unbeaten home record stretching back to their entry into the competition six years ago.

Team management duties for both of the club’s development sides – the Lion Cubs and the Fox Cubs – will be undertaken by promoters Stewart Dickson and Jen Crossland.
Dickson said: “We have a huge amount to thank Dave for during his time in charge of the Lion Cubs, and I’m sure his success rate puts him right up amongst the very top managers in the history of the NDL.

“We’ve always known the team has been in capable hands with him and that they would always represent Leicester Speedway to the best of their ability, and the record of trophies down the years is testament to that.
“It’s sad that Dave will no longer be manager, but we do understand the position and it’s good that he’s still going to be around at home meetings especially, as we all value the immense contribution he has made to the club.”
 
(FIXTURES)

MONDAY MARCH 24:
PREMIERSHIP KO CUP Q/F 1st leg: Belle Vue v Ipswich 7.30, Birmingham v Leicester 7.30, King’s Lynn v Oxford 7.30

THURSDAY MARCH 27:
PREMIERSHIP KO CUP Q/F 2nd leg: Ipswich v Belle Vue 7.30, Leicester v Birmingham 7.30, Oxford v King’s Lynn 7.30