(SPEEDWAY 1)

LEICESTER have been rocked by the loss of Szymon Wozniak for their upcoming schedule on the insistence of his Polish club.Wozniak, who had not missed an Elite League fixture since joining the Lions last year, was required to attend practice for Wroclaw instead of racing in home and away matches against Lakeside this weekend.Leicester boss Norrie Allan said: “It is an unsatisfactory situation that we have been placed under that is of no fault of Leicester Speedway or the rider. “We have reported the circumstances we find ourselves in to the BSPA who in turn have escalated the matter to the global governing body of motorcycle racing, but we are led to believe that Wroclaw are standing firm on their decision.“Szymon has told me he wants to ride for Leicester because he doesn’t want to let the fans down but is unable to go against the instructions of his Polish club. We have also received a communication that his start permission has been removed which means that he cannot ride in this country for Leicester in the foreseeable future. “We of course want to see Szymon back in the team as quickly as possible but may have to look at what options are available to us in the short term.”

(SPEEDWAY 2)

COVENTRY pulled off a dramatic 46-43 win over Belle Vue in an Elite League thriller at Brandon on Friday.The Aces led by nine points after Heat 6 and looked set for their second away win of the week, but back-to-back 5-1s in Heats 11 and 12 turned the match back the Bees’ way.They led by three points going into the final race and skipper Chris Harris delivered the goods for the home side, swooping around the visitors’ pair of Max Fricke and Craig Cook off the second bend.Harris, with 13+1, top-scored for the Bees with Fricke keeping up his impressive run of form on 11+2 for the Aces.Coventry boss Gary Havelock said: “Belle Vue are the in-form team after they smashed Poole at Wimborne Road on Monday, and with our injuries and missing KK (Krzysztof Kasprzak) we were underdogs.“The boys were sensational. I know we had a few bits of luck, but we also had a lot of bike trouble early on, and I don’t think Kacper (Woryna) should have been disqualified when he took avoiding action when Jason (Garrity) threw a chain and ended up in the fence.“But the way they pulled it back was amazing. I’m proud of them all, and there was such a fighting spirit there to come through again with a win.”Meanwhile Lakeside produced a totally dominant performance against Leicester with a 66-26 demolition of the Lions at Purfleet.The Hammers provided all 15 race winners and ran just two last places to maintain their perfect home record with a result which took them back to the top of the table on race points difference.Andreas Jonsson, Richard Lawson and Lewis Kerr all struck faultless paid maximums whilst Edward Kennett and Lewis Bridger also bagged double figures with impressive performances. Davey Watt scored nine for the beleaguered Lions.Lakeside co-promoter Jon Cook said: “It was a terrific team performance. Obviously there are going to be harder meetings but we were professional from start to finish.“Some people may have felt we were on the edge of a malaise, but the boys answered any doubts perfectly with a really convincing performance.”

(SPEEDWAY 3)

EDINBURGH snatched a last-gasp 46-44 Premier League win over Newcastle thanks to a sensational Heat 15 5-1 at Armadale.The Diamonds appeared to be heading for an away victory when Lewis Rose and Ludvig Lindgren combined for maximum points in the penultimate race to put the visitors ahead.But Sam Masters and Kevin Wolbert hit back in the decider, edging out Robert Lambert and a previously unbeaten Victor Palovaara to turn the match back in the Monarchs’ favour.Edinburgh boss Alex Harkess said: “We were pretty poor, though we never gave up. Newcastle must be really disappointed to lose the match.”Newcastle manager George English said: “We have enjoyed some superb matches up here over the years, and this is up there with the best as our lads really plugged away hard and made sure Edinburgh didn't get too far ahead.“It was just a shame we tripped up at the last hurdle missing out on the win by two. Victor was a revelation tonight racing his best match for us to date, while Robert, Ludvig and Lewis again provided us with some excellent moments and top points.”Meanwhile Brady Kurtz made his debut for Plymouth – but it was his brother Todd who took top billing in the Devils’ 56-37 win over Workington.Brady picked up nine (paid ten) from four rides despite two heavy falls, but Todd surged to 15-point maximum in a powerful display from the home side, with Claus Vissing offering the best opposition for the Comets on 13.Plymouth boss Lee Trigger said: “It was a bit of a worry seeing Brady go down and he wrote off his bike when he came off in Heat 6. But he used his second bike in the re-run and has gone away happy.“It is good to have a No.1 who can win Heat 1 for us. He and Kyle Newman started off with a 5-1 which set us on our way.“I thought Todd was superb for us all evening, but generally it was an all-round team effort. They all packed in the points and I believe we have a formidable line-up at home, which is also capable of picking up some points in away matches as well.”The Exeter/Isle of Wight challenge match at Somerset was abandoned after three races due to torrential rain at the Oaktree Arena.

(SPEEDWAY 4)

LAKESIDE co-promoter Jon Cook is calling upon his side to complete a quick-fire double over Leicester on Saturday.The Hammers’ only away win so far this season came at Beaumont Park in the early weeks, and they can go clear at the top of the table if they can follow up a huge 66-26 home win on Friday with victory in the East Midlands.Cook said: “When we’ve won at home by such a big score, you’d hope we’ll be able to go to Leicester and get a result.“We know it’s crucial that we manage to get something from Leicester, so hopefully we take our momentum into that meeting and get another victory.”In the Premier League, Sheffield can take over at the top of the table with a point or better from their away match at Workington.The Owlerton outfit will be without British Under-21 Champion Josh Bates who sustained a shoulder injury against Berwick on Thursday, and they switch Kyle Howarth to No.5 for the away trip to his former club – one of three ex-Comets in the Sheffield team.Sheffield star Jason Garrity said: “The team had a bad result at Workington last season, but we’re a totally different side this year and we’re in good form right now.“I want to go there, score some big points and hopefully the rest of the boys can carry on how they have been too so that we can pick up another win!”Workington boss Tony Jackson said: “The Tigers have been in great form this season. “All in all it has the ingredients of an absolutely brilliant speedway meeting and one that will have every point keenly contested – definitely a meeting not to be missed.”Meanwhile Berwick hand a home debut to recent signing Romano Hummel in their home clash with Redcar.Hummel will be partnered at reserve by another youngster, Dan Bewley, who comes in for the injured Liam Carr.In the Travel Plus National League, Eastbourne chief Connor Dugard is calling on his side to make the most of their Bank Holiday schedule.The Eagles host Cradley at Arlington on Saturday before making the trip to Rye House on Monday, and then visit champions Birmingham on Wednesday.Dugard said: “Cradley are once again right in the mix at the top of the table and it is vital we get the three league points against them on Saturday night to re-energise our championship challenge.“We have slipped down to mid-table and we need to get back up the league table and join the chasing pack. It’s a case of no slip ups at home on Saturday, and increase the haul of points on Monday.”Cradley No.1 Ashley Morris said: “Eastbourne can be a tough, tricky track to go to as an away team but we’re starting to ride with a bit more confidence now.“We need to start picking up points on the road and to do that, we need to ride sensibly, avoid last places and deny the opposition heat advantages where possible.”Meanwhile Stoke look to get off the mark in the league when they take on Rye House at Loomer Road.The Potters have recently won at Buxton and Belle Vue in other competitions, and boss Malcolm Vasey believes all-round strength will prove to be the key factor against the Raiders.Vasey said: “Rye House have a very strong heat-leader trio in Ben Morley, Rob Branford and of course Luke Priest who are all likely to score points around Loomer Road, but they have a very long tail end and we can hopefully capitalise on that. “We did go close to getting our first league points at Hoddesdon earlier this month and we are confident that we can overcome the challenges they may set us during the meeting.”(FIXTURES)

SATURDAY MAY 28:ELITE LEAGUE: Leicester v Lakeside 7.30 PREMIER LEAGUE: Berwick v Redcar 7pm, Workington v Sheffield 7pmTRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Eastbourne v Cradley 7.30, Stoke v Rye House 7pm

SUNDAY MAY 29:PREMIER LEAGUE: Glasgow v Newcastle 3pmTRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Mildenhall v Coventry 3.30NATIONAL LEAGUE KO CUP Q/F 1st leg: Buxton v Cradley 3pm

MONDAY MAY 30:ELITE LEAGUE: Belle Vue v Coventry 12pm, Swindon v Poole 4pm, Wolverhampton v King’s Lynn 7.30PREMIER LEAGUE: Newcastle v Glasgow 7.30, Rye House v Redcar 2pm, Scunthorpe v Peterborough 2pm, Peterborough v Ipswich 8pmTRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Kent v Mildenhall 3pm, Rye House v Eastbourne (fol