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SWINDON have just one place remaining in their side for 2017 after capturing exciting youngsters Emil Grondal and Zach Wajtknecht.Grondal joins the Robins after racing for Peterborough at Premier League level in the last two seasons, whilst Bristol-born Wajtknecht rode for Somerset last year and also won back-to-back National League titles with Birmingham.Swindon boss Alun Rossiter said: “Both of these signings really excite me and they're two riders who are only going to get better week by week I feel. “They're both young but they're both very keen and eager to learn and progress and they have both got some real good amounts of potential.“They also present themselves very professionally and after speaking to them about the equipment they'll be running I was even more encouraged and impressed.”
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POOLE have completed a move for Danish star Nicolai Klindt – a signing promoter Matt Ford hoped to make several years ago.Klindt is expected to slot in at reserve for the Pirates after captaining Leicester in the Elite League this year, with his former Premier League average of 5.42 with Scunthorpe applying for team building.Ford said: “I feel this day is long overdue. I first brought Nicolai to the UK for a testimonial meeting before he signed a contract, and he was outstanding. Sadly for us, he chose to sign elsewhere, so jokingly he has some making up to do.“He has since remained a rider whom I have great admiration for. I have come close on a number of occasions to signing him but this year he is on a bargain average.“I have belief in his ability to significantly improve on that starting figure and I am delighted to be in a position to bring him to Poole at last.”
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NEWCASTLE have revealed their starting septet for their SGB Championship challenge – with their top two of Robert Lambert and Steve Worrall both back with the club.Skipper Ludvig Lindgren, youngster Danny Phillips and late-season signing Ashley Morris also return, along with Lewis Rose who missed the closing stages of 2016 due to injury, and they are joined at reserve by Connor Coles who raced for Mildenhall in recent National League campaigns. Manager George English said: “We knew Steve was more than likely to return, but when we heard the completely unexpected news that Robert was also available to us we had to move fast and secure him to run with the best top two in our league once again.“But in doing so, we've had to make some agonisingly tough decisions to dispense with Matej Kus, which was a truly awful task, while Victor Palovaara was also a name we could not hire for 2017.“The rule changes haven't played into our hands, but we're not the only team to have cause to lose valued racing staff, so we're all in the same boat, but we are happy with our final choice of seven, although our options were very wide indeed.”
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GLASGOW have handed Tom Perry a reserve position for the 2017 season as he becomes the Tigers’ fifth signing.Perry will link up with his 2016 Birmingham team-mate Jack Smith at Ashfield after having Premier League spells with Peterborough and Berwick this year.Perry said: “The last three years have been going really well but I've got hurt one way or another and it's knocked me back. Hopefully that won't happen next year - I just want to push on and look at doing full-time Championship and Premiership in 2018.“If I have a good year in the Championship, hopefully the Tigers will stay with me. I want to push into the main body this year and try to stay with them the year after as well.“I did a couple of guest bookings for Glasgow a few years back and I've had pretty decent meetings there, and I like the track. When I had the call I was really pleased because they're probably the biggest club in the Championship.”
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SIMON Lambert has set the date of Sunday March 26 (2pm) for his ‘Decennary’ Testimonial event at King’s Lynn.Lambert is an asset of the Stars having ridden at the Adrian Flux Arena either for King’s Lynn or Boston across seven different seasons, and he now races at nearby Peterborough in the Championship.He is now planning for an early-season event after putting back initial intentions to stage the meeting last August.Lambert said: “Decennary originated from Latin as an old English word for ten years or decade. It’s different, it’s unusual – and it’s hopefully memorable too.“Technically, I should now really be going with the equivalent for eleven years, but Undecennary doesn’t have quite the same ring, does it?“The meeting should have some great racing, with a bit of fun and nostalgia thrown in for good measure.”
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BUXTON team manager Jason Pipe has confirmed he will be staying with the National League club next season.Pipe says he has stuck with the Hitmen despite having the opportunity to be involved at Championship level in 2017 – and is optimistic of building a team to improve greatly on a campaign badly hit by injuries and retirements.Pipe said: “After weighing things up and looking back at how things have gone for myself and Buxton Speedway over the last two seasons, I feel like I've still got unfinished business at Hi-Edge. “Who's to say how long I will be here for, but after one half decent season and a very bad one, I didn't want to leave it at that and say goodbye. Jayne and Richard (Moss) have been very good to me and we do work well together, which is not always the case with some team managers and their bosses!“I'm already excited about next season, as team building is going to plan so far! Believe me, Buxton will have a team next season where no one will be coming to Buxton looking for an easy victory like last term!”
