BRITISH SPEEDWAY MAJOR EVENTS 2016BRITISH UNDER-21 FINAL: JOSH BATESBRITISH FINAL: DANNY KINGPREMIER LEAGUE PAIRS: SOMERSETPREMIER LEAGUE FOURS WEEKEND: PLYMOUTHPREMIER LEAGUE RIDERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP: SIMON STEADELITE LEAGUE RIDERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP: Coventry, October 8
NATIONAL LEAGUE MAJOR EVENTS 2016NATIONAL LEAGUE FOURS: RYE HOUSENATIONAL LEAGUE PAIRS: King’s Lynn, October 16NATIONAL LEAGUE RIDERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP: MAX CLEGG
BRITISH SPEEDWAY FIM EVENTS 2016:WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP QUALIFIER: FREDRIK LINDGRENWORLD UNDER-21 QUALIFIER: DIMITRI BERGEWORLD UNDER-21 FINAL Round 1: KRYSTIAN PIESZCZEK
ELITE LEAGUE LATEST…
BELLE VUE boss Mark Lemon expects his side to be back to all-round strength when their play-off campaign resumes at home.The Aces won at Lakeside last week despite Max Fricke and Joe Jacobs both failing to score, but Lemon says things will be different at the National Speedway Stadium.Lemon said: “Max had a bit of a bad night and Joe unfortunately hasn't been feeling great these last few days. He had to pull out of his meeting with Ipswich at the weekend and he still wasn't 100 per cent at Lakeside."But he did the best he could in the circumstances, though come the home leg we'll really need him to be chipping in. He's got good confidence at our place though and we have great faith in him.”LAKESIDE have moved to bring in teenage sensation Robert Lambert for their rearranged play-off trip to Belle Vue on Wednesday.Boss Jon Cook said: “We’re pleased to have secured the services of Robert for this meeting, he is one of the most exciting young riders in the world and he is flying an engine over from Germany especially.“He’s in with a chance of winning the World Under-21 title and he won a silver medal with GB in the World Cup. He was unavailable on Monday but now he is available for the new date we will take him to Belle Vue and the rain-off has made us that bit stronger in my view.”LEICESTER have arranged a date for their final Elite League fixture of the season.The Lions will now host King’s Lynn on Friday October 7 in the final top-flight match of 2016, after two previous rain-offs at Beaumont Park.POOLE captain Bjarne Pedersen is likely to miss the remainder of the season – even if the Pirates reach the Elite League Grand Final.Pedersen told the Bournemouth Echo: “I don’t need an operation but there’s some damage to the (knee) ligaments. There’s not much I can do, I just have to give it time to really heal.“I am 100 per cent out for Wednesday. I don’t think I will be back for next week either. I don’t want to say that 100 per cent for now. It may be that in three or four days, I feel much better. It doesn’t look like I’ll be back, though.”WOLVERHAMPTON boss Peter Adams says a 12-point deficit can be turned around when his side host Poole in the second leg of their play-off semi-final.Adams said: “This tie is far from over and we'll be looking to make the most of our own home track advantage, and we've got riders who are capable of scoring very heavily at Monmore.“We had a talk as a team at the end of the meeting and you can see just how much they want to make the final. They're certainly not ready for their seasons to be over just yet - they're well up for the second leg and there's no reason why we can't reverse that scoreline.”PREMIER LEAGUE LATEST…
EDINBURGH legend Ryan Fisher has announced he will retire at the end of the 2016 season.Said Fisher: "The family are the number one priority for me; my career has been a big part of our lives, our lifestyle has been built around speedway. "We did talk a short while back about possibly doing another year, we’ve had so many good years here, but I thought about it and decided that we are just putting off the rest of our lives, it would just be another year later and we would be no better off."GLASGOW boss Stewart Dickson says his side can't afford to be complacent despite picking up a 38-34 away victory at Somerset in their Knockout Cup semi-final clash.Said Dickson: "To be honest I felt we should have won by more, given the fact that they were weakened; there was an opportunity to win by more than four. "The tie is far from over and our guys know that. But we’ve given ourselves a great chance of making two finals now – and we can’t ask for anything more than that.” IPSWICH team manager Ritchie Hawkins was thrilled by his side's 58-32 play-off quarter final home win over Edinburgh - but is wary of the danger the Monarchs possess around their own circuit ahead of Friday's second leg.Said Hawkins: "Edinburgh have beaten many a side over the years by more than 26 points - they are the two-time reigning Champions!""But the boys are starting to believe how good they are now and we've come into form at the right time of the season."NEWCASTLE boss George English is backing British youngster Robert Lambert to have a successful end to the season after scoring a maximum in their 61-31 demolition of Scunthorpe.Said English: "It was a good run-out for the lads with Robert looking sharper that he has all season."With his World Under-21 bid coming up at the weekend, then he's hit form at just the right time, as he has for us with the play-offs and Knockout Cup conclusions all approaching over the next few weeks. "We're a side ready to take on the challenge!”PETERBOROUGH sent a patched up side to Edinburgh last Friday - and suffered a heavy 59-33 defeat.Panthers boss Carl Johnson said: "It was a disappointing way to end a season which we would all like to forget.“Now is the time to reflect on the past few months, assess the things that went wrong and look at what can be put right in the future.”SCUNTHORPE were comfortably beaten 61-31 at Newcastle on Sunday - and Austrian racer Fritz Wallner sustained a suspected broken ankle in the process.Scorpions team manager Dave Peet said: "Fritz went into the corner all wrong and lost control. I hope he’s avoided breaking his ankle, while if it is broken, I wish him a speedy recovery and he’s got the winter to get fit and strong again."It was the usual uphill battle for us at Newcastle. We didn’t seem to start that badly, but we struggled to keep up with the changes to the track. We battled away, but couldn’t stop them from pulling away."SHEFFIELD reserve Arthur Sissis admits his side are relieved just to have reached the end-of-season play-offs ahead of their quarter-final tie with Newcastle.Sissis told the Sheffield Star: "With all the injuries and bad luck we’ve had, I think we’ve done really well just to make it in the end. "But now we’re here, we want to go all the way but it’s going to take a massive team effort."We haven’t got the best record at their place but we can improve and gaining an advantage from our home meeting will be important."SOMERSET boss Garry May is taking inspiration from their narrow Premier League victory at Glasgow last month, as they head to Scotland on Sunday trailing by four points in their Knockout Cup semi-final tie.Said May: "It just means that we have to go to there on Sunday and take the win, just as we did in the league, so this tie is far from over!"We will have Jake Allen restored to the side for Sunday’s match and although Jake has never previously ridden at Glasgow, he has already shown on a number of occasions this year that he is a quick learner!"WORKINGTON boss Tony Jackson is targeting one final win in 2016 when they wrap up their league programme against Redcar on Saturday.Said Jackson: "Naturally it has been disappointing to miss out on the play-offs, but we still want to finish as high as we possibly can in the final league table. "A victory over Redcar would see us finish level on points with Peterborough, but we can leap-frog them and move up from eighth place to a final finishing position of seventh by virtue of a superior points difference should we defeat the Bears by at least a sixteen-point margin; so that is the target that we have set ourselves for Saturday!”
TRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE LATEST…
BELLE VUE claimed a hard-fought 50-40 win over play-off bound Cradley at the National Speedway Stadium on Friday.Colts skipper Matt Williamson said: “We should all be proud of ourselves as we know what a powerful team Cradley are. “With R/R in effect I was a bit busier, and both Andy (Mellish) and David (Holt) did much better which was great to see.“We’ve struggled more at reserve this season but they did really well and chipped in vital points on the night while the rest of the boys put in a good night’s work at the office. We’re really happy.”BIRMINGHAM star Tom Bacon has vowed to race through the pain barrier in their National League play-off semi-final clash with Cradley.Bacon, who crashed heavily on a guest appearance for Somerset, said: “I'm lucky in many ways because it was probably the worst crash I've been involved in and I could have suffered more serious injuries.“I got clamped down on the first bend, bikes tangled and three of us accelerated right into the air fence.“All the bikes were on top of me and I could feel them starting to burn. But thankfully the staff managed to get them off me just in time.“I want to score some big points for the team in the play-offs and I'll race through the pain if that's what it takes!”BUXTON finally recorded their first home win of the campaign with an impressive 52-38 success over Eastbourne on Sunday.Team boss Jason Pipe stated: “We've waited patiently all season and we've finally got that first home win of the season. I'm so chuffed for the lads to finally get that win and to see their faces when we won was amazing. “All in all, it was an excellent all-round team performance. Every one of them was helping each other and they thoroughly deserved their win. “Now we have a week off before the Brummies arrive next Sunday and I'm sure after that result, they'll be looking over their shoulders a little bit!” COVENTRY Storm are waiting for news on their last three matches of the National League season.The Storm are yet to visit Belle Vue, whilst their home matches against Stoke and Rye House last Friday were postponed due to “political issues” which meant Brandon remained closed on the day.CRADLEY boss Will Pottinger has refused to press the panic button after seeing his side slip to a 50-40 defeat at Belle Vue in their final fixture of the regular season.Pottinger said: “It's never nice to lose but the boys did their best at a track they've never seen before.“Hopefully they’ve come out of this better riders for the experience. It’s so vital at this stage in the season, particularly with the Play-Offs looming, that you don’t go dropping points unnecessarily.“We’re looking forward now to the business end of the season. We’ve got some tough matches ahead with some very good teams. We are the underdogs but that’s something we’re happy to be.” EASTBOURNE boss Connor Dugard was delighted to warm up for a huge week with a convincing 57-33 win over King’s Lynn on Saturday.The Eagles will now face Cradley in their Knockout Cup semi-final first leg tonight (Tuesday) before heading to Kent in the play-offs on Friday. “All in all, a good result,” Dugard commented. “We controlled the match from the off.“King’s Lynn put up a good fight but our team is fully dialled in now with two semi-finals coming up in the next week. There is tremendous focus in the camp.”ISLE OF WIGHT team manager Neil Vatcher has hailed the 2016 season as a big success for the club.Vatcher said: “It’s been a huge team effort down at the Isle of Wight this year and what a fantastic return season it’s been.“The results have been a bit up and down, but there’ve been some cracking speedway meetings and I think a lot of people could learn a few things from the Isle of Wight this year.“There’s been so many people who’ve made this a success story but huge credit has to be given to Barry Bishop and Martin Widman.“18 months ago, speedway on the island again was just a dream, but those two in particular have made it reality and they’ve got a great vision going forwards.”KENT are gearing up for the first leg of their National League Play-Off Semi-Final tie with Eastbourne on Friday (6.30).The Kings will welcome the Eagles to Central Park in a huge clash as they look to take a big step towards title glory.Meanwhile, last-heat heroics from Luke Bowen saw the Kings win the Kent County Fours on home shale last Friday.KING'S Lynn Young Stars went down fighting but could not prevent a 57-33 defeat at Eastbourne on Saturday night.Top scorer Nathan Greaves said: “I can't remember the last time Eastbourne lost at home, so it was always going to be tough.“We all gave it our best, and on a personal note I did much better than last time I rode there. I think I scored about five on my last trip to Eastbourne, so I was really pleased with my personal performance.”MILDENHALL Chairman Kevin Jolly was pleased to end their season in entertaining fashion with a 40-38 win over a National League Select side at West Row.Jolly said: “It was old style speedway entertainment and I would like to thank all the riders for their efforts.“They certainly put on a show and it was a fine way to end the season. Overall it has been a good year and without our unfortunate injuries it could have been so much better, we will look forward to 2017 with renewed optimism.”RYE HOUSE Raiders saw their winning run brought to an end with a 55-35 defeat at King’s Lynn last Wednesday.Team boss Peter Schroeck said: “We are not going to allow ourselves to get too disappointed over this one because King’s Lynn are pretty strong at home and make this a fairly tough place to come to. “Even Branny (Rob Branford) struggled a bit with the track tonight as they had to pull all the dirt off because the tide was in, although it was obviously the same for both sides. We’ve enjoyed a really good run recently, and we won’t let one match get us down.”STOKE man Paul Burnett concedes his equipment may have held him back over the course of the campaign.He told Speedway Star: “My bikes are a bit tired, particularly the one which is about 18 years old.“They’re okay at times but there are times when I just can’t squeeze enough speed out of them. As long as I’m competitive I don’t mind too much, but the points haven’t come this time like they have in the past.“It’s too late in the season to be spending on them now. I spent a lot of money last season on the better bike I have but I can’t justify doing that again.”
FIXTURE PICTURE…
TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 27:NATIONAL LEAGUE KO CUP S/F 1st leg: Cradley v Eastbourne 7.30
WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 28:ELITE LEAGUE PLAY-OFF S/F 2nd leg: Belle Vue v Lakeside 7.30, Wolverhampton v Poole 7.30
THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 29:PREMIER LEAGUE PLAY-OFF Q/F 1st leg: Sheffield v Newcastle 7.30
FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 30:PREMIER LEAGUE PLAY-OFF Q/F 2nd leg: Edinburgh v Ipswich 7.30TRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE PLAY-OFF S/F 1st leg: Kent v Eastbourne 6.30
SATURDAY OCTOBER 1:PREMIER LEAGUE: Workington v Redcar 7pmTRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Stoke v Mildenhall 7pm
SUNDAY OCTOBER 2:PREMIER LEAGUE PLAY-OFF Q/F 2nd leg: Newcastle v Sheffield 6.30PREMIER LEAGUE KO CUP S/F 2nd leg: Glasgow v Somerset 3pmTRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Buxton v Birmingham 3pm
MONDAY OCTOBER 3:ELITE LEAGUE GRAND FINAL 1st leg: TBC v TBC 7.30
WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 5:ELITE LEAGUE GRAND FINAL 2nd leg: TBC v TBC 7.30
THURSDAY OCTOBER 6:TRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE PLAY-OFF S/F 1st leg: Birmingham v Cradley 7.30
FRIDAY OCTOBER 7:ELITE LEAGUE: Leicester v King’s Lynn 7.30PREMIER LEAGUE PLAY-OFF S/F: Somerset v Ipswich/Edinburgh 7.30TRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE PLAY-OFF S/F 2nd leg: Eastbourne v Kent 8pm
SATURDAY OCTOBER 8:ELITE LEAGUE RIDERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP: Coventry 7.30PREMIER LEAGUE KO CUP S/F 1st leg: Rye House v Newcastle 7pmLEAGUE CUP S/F 2nd leg: Workington v Glasgow 7pmTRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Stoke v Isle of Wight 7pm
SUNDAY OCTOBER 9:PREMIER LEAGUE KO CUP S/F 2nd leg: Newcastle v Rye House 6.30TRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Buxton v Isle of Wight 3pm, Buxton v King’s Lynn (follows previous fixture)
MONDAY OCTOBER 10:TRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE PLAY-OFF S/F 2nd leg: Cradley v Birmingham 7.30
TUESDAY OCTOBER 11:RECYCLED AGGREGATE SERVICES OLYMPIQUE: Wolverhampton 7.30
