BRITISH SPEEDWAY SEPTEMBER 24, 2024
(SPEEDWAY 1)
ACES’ STRONG LEAD
BELLE Vue hold an 18-point advantage at the halfway stage of the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership Grand Final after a 54-36 win over Leicester in the first leg in Manchester.
Dan Bewley swept to an imperious 15-point maximum for the Aces, who came up with a strong finish to the meeting after their lead had been pegged at eight points with three races remaining.
The home side adapted better to conditions as rain moved in during the second half of the meeting, with Brady Kurtz (10+2) and Jaimon Lidsey (10+1) also in double figures, and Niels-Kristian Iversen made a strong guest appearance with 8+1.
It means the Aces will travel to the East Midlands as favourites on Thursday, although their visits to Beaumont Park this season have resulted in defeats by margins of 16 and 20 points.
Bewley said: “It was a good night for me but more importantly a good night for the boys, but the job’s not finished yet. We go again in a couple of days at Leicester and that’s a big one.
“They’re good at their place just as we are here, and they kept us honest for a time. The track was really good, it’s just a shame the rain came when it did, but we knew we’d have to make it work.
“Brady and myself had a plan ahead of Heat 15. We knew what lines we wanted and we made it work.
“We take 18 points into the next leg. Hopefully it’s enough but we’ll see what we can do.”
(SPEEDWAY 2)
LEICESTER manager Stewart Dickson has vowed his side will approach the second leg of the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership Grand Final with “all guns blazing.”
The Lions were only able to provide two race wins in Manchester on Monday as they went down to a 54-36 defeat at Belle Vue.
Their task is therefore now identical to the one faced by Sheffield last year, who lost the first leg of the Grand Final at Ipswich with the same scoreline before turning it around at Owlerton.
Dickson said: “Eighteen points is a lot when you hear it out loud, but the boys battled away in tough conditions and I can’t point fingers at anybody.
“The home riders managed to cope better than us, they had their tails up and Heats 13 and 15 hurt us tonight unfortunately.
“It’s been a difficult night for us but we’re not throwing the towel in, I can assure you. We’ll give it a go on Thursday and we’ll see what happens.
“We need to come out all guns blazing there, and after six or seven races we’ll know if we’re in with a chance.”
(SPEEDWAY 3)
OXFORD captain Scott Nicholls has highlighted the value of teamwork as they go into the Cab Direct Championship Grand Final against old rivals Poole this week.
Cheetahs host the first leg of the title decider at Cowley on Wednesday before the return takes place at Wimborne Road 48 hours later.
The Pirates have performed strongly at Oxford this season, losing by one point in the BSN Series whilst the league match went to a Super Heat after a 45-45 draw – but after a heavy defeat on their first visit to Dorset, Cheetahs ended Poole’s 42-match unbeaten home run with a 49-41 in August.
Nicholls said: “The two legs of the Final are going to be very much a team effort. Riders do put themselves under pressure for meetings like this, but it’s how you respond to that.
“If a rider is going well and is on form, we’ve got to keep them in the right place. If they’re not having such a good night, we need to help them turn it around.
“Both myself as captain and Pete (Schroeck) as team manager will be looking to get the maximum out of the boys.
“But it extends beyond that. All the team will be mucking in and helping each other – it’s team spirit that can make such a difference on these occasions and we have a good team spirit.”
(FIXTURES)
WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 25:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP GRAND FINAL 1st leg: Oxford v Poole 7.30
THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 26:
ROWE MOTOR OIL PREMIERSHIP GRAND FINAL 2nd leg: Leicester (36) v Belle Vue (54) 7.30
FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 27:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP GRAND FINAL 2nd leg: Poole v Oxford 7.30
TEESSIDE SILVER HELMET: Redcar 7.30
DAYNE KINGSHOTT IS AGAIN KING OF WINGS CHAMPION!