BRITISH SPEEDWAY AUGUST 22, 2023

(SPEEDWAY 1)

WOLVERHAMPTON’S DRAMATIC TWO POINT VICTORY

WOLVERHAMPTON are on the brink of play-off qualification after a 46-44 win over Ipswich in another dramatic meeting at Monmore Green.

But that spot is still not quite secure, and the Witches still have an outside chance of the top four, after Jason Doyle and Emil Sayfutdinov raced to a 5-1 in Heat 15 to take the aggregate point.
The Witches’ top two both piled up the points with Doyle scoring 15, missing out only in a competitive Heat 13, and Sayfutdinov picked up 12+2.

Wolves’ solidarity saw them just make it over the line, with Ryan Douglas top scoring on 8+2 – but home boss Peter Adams admits he is concerned by their current form at Monmore.
He said: “It’s something we spoke about in our team meeting earlier in the day. That’s not going to be something that is a recipe for success in the play-offs and we obviously need to be more dominant here.

“The guys know the seriousness of that moving forward but this was a meeting we just had to win.
“We were expecting a tough meeting; Ipswich are desperate for the points and they rode very well but we had just that little bit too much for them.”
Witches boss Ritchie Hawkins said: “I thought it was a great performance, and I can’t fault the team. Ordinarily you would be happy with that result at Wolves, picking up the aggregate point. But obviously we’ve left ourselves with such a big gap to make up, it looks like not being enough.

“There was rain before the start and the track was tricky. But the boys put everything into it and at times got caught out. But certainly, I can’t fault them for that.
“We’ve got two league meetings left, starting on Thursday against Leicester. We must win them, and we’ll have to see if anything happens elsewhere to get us in the play-offs.”
 
(SPEEDWAY 2)

PETERBOROUGH moved off the bottom of the Sports Insure Premiership table with both match and aggregate points in a dramatic conclusion against Sheffield.
The Panthers won 53-37 and finished with a 5-1 from Vadim Tarasenko and Niels-Kristian Iversen in Heat 15 as Tai Woffinden suffered his only defeat of the night.

Both sides saw their Rising Stars ruled out after Dan Gilkes and Jordan Jenkins crashed in Heat 2, and that reduced the Tigers to five riders as No.1 Tobiasz Musielak was missing after a crash in Poland on Sunday.
But reserve Patryk Wojdylo racked up 13+2 for the Panthers with Tarasenko adding 12+1 and Iversen 9+3, whilst the visitors lacked support for Woffinden’s sensational 18+1 haul.

Peterborough manager Rob Lyon said: “It shows what a settled team can do around here, and I’m really pleased for them.
“I’m pleased for the fans too – it’s nice to get a win under our belts, and it was great to get the aggregate point as well and not just the win.”

Sheffield boss Simon Stead said: “You’re always on the back foot when you’re starting with R/R for your No.1.
“It was a great effort from Tai – but he can’t do it on his own. He needed a couple of others to step up but we were let down in some areas, and that’s disappointing.”
 
(SPEEDWAY 3)
 
SPORTS Insure Premiership leaders Belle Vue made light work of King’s Lynn with a 57-27 win at the National Speedway Stadium.
The meeting was curtailed one race early due to rain but the Aces dominated proceedings with Brady Kurtz (11+1) scoring a paid maximum whilst Dan Bewley and Jaimon Lidsey both scored 11 and dropped their only points to Robert Lambert on his return to the NSS.

Lambert scored nine and won two races along the way, whilst namesake Simon Lambert was the visitors’ only other heat winner.
Kurtz said: “It’s a shame we couldn’t get that final heat raced but, again, it’s a credit to this track that we were able to get as far as we did in those conditions.
“A win is a win however you look at it and it is another great result for the team with only a couple more meetings to go before the play-offs next month.”

Stars manager David Hoggart said: “Conditions didn’t help although it was the same for both sides, and obviously the Belle Vue guys have got a bit of home track advantage – they go really, really well here.
“I don’t need to kid anybody, we turned up with an under-strength team and we missed Nicolai (Klindt) terribly. If he’d been here, he would have been in double figures as he has been consistently all year really.”

(SPEEDWAY 4)

OXFORD have announced the signing of teenage talent Ashton Boughen who will go into their Cab Direct Championship side having now turned 16.
Boughen, who has starred for Leicester in the NDL this season, will make his Cheetahs debut at Cowley on Friday in the home clash with Plymouth, with Luke Killeen making way although he remains with the club in the third tier.

Manager Peter Schroeck said: “Ashton is one of the most exciting riders to enter British Speedway in many years. His ability on the bike at such a young age is extraordinary and we’re delighted to have him on board.
“Our Championship campaign is entering an important period with only three regular season fixtures to complete before the play-offs begin. It’s critical we finish top of the league to not only send a message out to our opponents, but also secure the route we want to take to the Grand Final.

“We have every faith in Ashton’s ability to help the team achieve this and look forward to welcoming him into the squad on Friday for his debut. At the same time, we are genuinely devastated for Luke to miss out.
“Naturally, he was gutted when we told him the news. But he respected our decision which to me is the sign of a true professional and he will be a major part of our team building plans for 2024 so we can continue our record of helping young riders to progress.”

(SPEEDWAY 5)

GLASGOW kick off a big week on the road when they travel to Plymouth in the Cab Direct Championship tonight (Tuesday).
The Tigers also visit Poole and Scunthorpe over the coming four days and can make significant inroads on the top two of Oxford and the Pirates depending on their results.

Plymouth have named Nathan Ablitt as a guest for the injured Dan Thompson with rider replacement for Ben Barker who has a broken collarbone, but Dan Gilkes was withdrawn from his Premiership match for Sheffield on Monday after a crash.
The Tigers had announced a full one-to-seven for the meeting but it is now reported that Polish racer Marcin Nowak has left the club in order to focus on meetings in his home country.

(FIXTURES)

TUESDAY AUGUST 22:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP: Plymouth (35) v Glasgow (55) 7pm

WEDNESDAY AUGUST 23:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP: Birmingham (39) v Scunthorpe (51) 7.30, Poole (44) v Glasgow (46) 7.30
NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE: Oxford (46) v Berwick (44) 7.30

THURSDAY AUGUST 24:
SPORTS INSURE PREMIERSHIP R2: Ipswich (53) v Leicester (37) 7.30, King’s Lynn (27) v Belle Vue (57) 7.30, Sheffield v Wolverhampton 7.30