BRITISH SPEEDWAY APRIL 13, 2021

(SPEEDWAY 1)

PEDERSEN DEPARTS PETERBOROUGH

PETERBOROUGH are searching for a new signing after No.1 Nicki Pedersen left the club.
Pedersen completed less than one racing lap for the Panthers after crashing out of their Premiership opener against Ipswich just over a fortnight ago.

He said: “I have to pull out for now and resign, the body is just not fit enough with my injury for the technical British Speedway tracks. “I hope you can find a replacement very quick and move on and focus on the main thing, winning the British league.”
A Panthers statement said: “It is a great shame that Nicki has had to leave. We understand and respect his reasons and wish him well for the remainder of the season.

“Nicki was very much the marquee signing we wanted to help Peterborough enjoy a great season, and we are now madly scouring the speedway world as we look to bring in a signing to replace him.
“We have already spoken to half a dozen very high-profile riders, who at this moment have all turned down the opportunity due to commitments in the Grand Prix or elsewhere in meetings abroad. Several of those riders have indicated that the situation may change later in the year. “We will continue with this process as we look for the best replacement for Nicki that we can possibly bring in.”

(SPEEDWAY 2)

KING’S Lynn have made an early switch to their riding order ahead of tonight’s (Thursday) Premiership clash with Wolverhampton at the Adrian Flux Arena. The Stars, who are racing at home for the first time, suffered two heavy defeats on the road last week and will now track Michael Palm Toft at No.5 with Krzysztof Kasprzak moving into the middle-order.

Meanwhile Wolves bring in Scott Nicholls to guest for the injured Luke Becker and have a 56-34 advantage heading into the meeting with the aggregate point at stake.
Stars boss Alex Brady said: “Everything feels a bit better at home, and we’re all confident that this is the night our season begins.

“A win here will make everything feel better and allow some of our early-season confidence to come back, and set us up for a tough second half of the month.
“We’ve had a rough start and we’re looking to put that right on Thursday. I’m confident we can, and confident in the ability of what we’ve got.”

Wolves star Steve Worrall said: “We know it will be a lot tougher at King’s Lynn; they’ll want to show their supporters they’re a different side around their own track.
“And let’s not forget, towards the end of last season our performance there was dreadful if we’re being honest.
“So as a team we feel we’ve got a bit of making up to do on that part if you like. But we also want to go there and carry on our strong start to the year.”

(SPEEDWAY 3)

IPSWICH face Belle Vue at Foxhall tonight (Thursday) in an early repeat of last season’s play-off semi-final.
The Aces stunned the Witches with a big away win last September but are seeking to bounce back themselves from a tough start to 2023, including their heavy KO Cup defeat at Wolverhampton on Monday.
But the home side have started well with two wins, and with Jason Doyle and Emil Sayfutdinov proving to be a highly successful Heats 13/15 combination.

German racer Erik Riss misses the meeting due to illness, whilst the visitors again bring in ex-Witches rider Anders Rowe to guest for concussion victim Jake Mulford.
Ipswich boss Ritchie Hawkins said: “A tough ask becomes harder for us missing Erik. He is a vital part at the top end of our team, so it puts more emphasis on the bottom end to score points.
“Belle Vue had a couple of tough results against Sheffield, but I really wouldn’t read a lot into that. They are the reigning champions and are one of the favourites to win again this season.

“I think they bring a very strong side and pose a dangerous threat to us. We will need to carry on from where we left off last week.”
Aces youngster Norick Blodorn said: “In the past, we’ve always done well around Ipswich. We’ve kept things close and myself, in the play-offs, I think I scored paid nine so it’s a track that we all like and can produce results at. 
“Obviously the past few weeks have been tough, and lessons have been learned from each meeting and one thing we always say is that anything that came before is irrelevant on the night.

“This is a new day; a new meeting, and we can’t afford to allow previous mistakes to creep into our performance. We’re the reigning champions and we need to start performing like champions.”

(SPEEDWAY 4)

LEICESTER face Peterborough tonight (Thursday) in their first home meeting at the Pidcock Motorcycles Arena, Beaumont Park.The Lions have only raced once so far in 2023, when they went down by six points at Ipswich in the KO Cup last week, which was also the outcome in the Panthers’ sole fixture at home to the Witches.

The visitors operate rider replacement at No.1 for Nicki Pedersen, who has now officially left the club, but Lions boss Stewart Dickson is still wary of the challenge.
He said: “I can only concentrate on our team, and getting us ready, and the riders are itching to go, they’re desperate to get some meetings under their belt.

“It’s still going to be a stiff test because we know Peterborough have riders who ride our track – Richie Worrall has proved that before, (Niels-Kristian) Iversen is a former track record holder, and Hans Andersen is ex-Leicester too, and others have done plenty of laps here.
“I’m pretty sure Rob Lyon will cover Nicki Pedersen’s rides as well as he can to maximise their points, but for us it’s all about getting a home win. “This is almost a banana skin first home meeting, and I’m not getting any fanciful ideas about winning by 12 or 14 points and trying to put the aggregate point beyond doubt. It’s all about making sure we win our first league match of the season.”

(SPEEDWAY 5)

NEW Monarchs Academy boss Scott Wilson has high hopes for a successful NDL season at Edinburgh this year.
The rebranded side launch their campaign in the third tier against Belle Vue at Armadale on Friday, with a team that appears significantly stronger than last season’s Devils outfit.

Wilson said: “As a lifelong Monarchs supporter, I am immensely proud to be Team Manager of our Academy side.
“I will give everything I have to the role and make sure the riders know what it means to ride for this club and the expectations that come with that.

“I’m very pleased with the team that we have built for the 2023 season. It has a fantastic balance to it with strength throughout and that desired mix of youth and experience.”

(SPEEDWAY 6)

THE British Youth Championship has been extended to eight rounds with the news that Birmingham will be added to the fixture list on Wednesday May 31.
British Youth boss Neil Vatcher said: “We are absolutely delighted to be offered another stand-alone round, and to be able to take the British Youth Championship to such a great venue like Birmingham will be fantastic for all the competing riders.
“The only downside at Birmingham is that due to council restrictions we are limited to how many heats we are allowed to run, therefore at this round there will be no support class.”

The Young Lions would like to thank the Birmingham promotion for their continued support of British Youth Speedway, as now they will be hosting the Youth Round on the May 31, and then just four weeks later on June 28, the British Under-19 Final will take place at Perry Barr.

(FIXTURES)

THURSDAY APRIL 13:
PREMIERSHIP R1: Ipswich v Belle Vue 7.30, King’s Lynn (34) v Wolverhampton (56) 7.30, Leicester v Peterborough 7.30

FRIDAY APRIL 14:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP: Scunthorpe v Oxford 7.30
BSN SERIES: Glasgow v Berwick 7.30
NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE: Edinburgh v Belle Vue 7.30

SATURDAY APRIL 15:
BSN SERIES: Berwick v Glasgow 7pm, Redcar v Birmingham 7.30

SUNDAY APRIL 16:
NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE KO CUP S/F 2nd leg: Mildenhall (46) v Kent (44) 4pm