BRITISH SPEEDWAY WEEKLY BULLETIN 2025/10
Feature photo by: RICHARD BOETTCHER… LEICESTER piled the pressure on Premiership KO Cup holders Sheffield with a 54-36 win in the first leg of their semi-final on Monday.
Ryan Douglas scored a 14+1 paid maximum for the Lions, and celebrated his full house following a win over Tigers duo Jack Holder and Josh Pickering in Heat 15.
HERE’S the latest news and fixtures from around the tracks up and down the country.
ROWE MOTOR OIL PREMIERSHIP LATEST
BRUMMIES MAKE IT TWO
BIRMINGHAM manager Chris Adams said he was pleased for the fans after they finally got to see a victory at Perry Bar with Monday’s 47-43 win over Belle Vue, to back up the narrow victory at Leicester one week earlier.
Adams said: “I’m so glad the home fans got to see us get a home win because they’ve been waiting such a long time.
“They come out every week supporting us so it was good for us to give them something back and something for them to cheer about.”
FINE MARGINS FOR ACES
BELLE Vue boss Mark Lemon explained his Heat 15 selection in Monday’s narrow defeat at Birmingham with Zach Cook getting the nod – but the Aces were then hampered when Dan Bewley was penalised for touching the tapes.
Lemon said: “We went with Zach in Heat 15 because he was going well. He was on a 5-1 with Jaimon (Lidsey) in Heat 10 before (Jonas) Jeppesen took him out. Then he made an excellent start in Heat 14. So he would have been unbeaten in his last two rides.
“He knows Perry Barr really well with being dialled in at the end of the meeting, he also had a warm tyre and being an ex-Birmingham rider, he wanted to prove a point.
“In the end you are working with percentages. The plan was for Dan to do something from gate three and Zach to pick up what he could.”
LIONS’ FEET ON THE GROUND
LEICESTER manager Stewart Dickson was delighted with a 54-36 win over Sheffield in the first leg of their KO Cup semi-final – but he sounded a warning to expect a Tigers fightback.
Dickson said: “I did bring them down to earth very quickly to say not to get ahead of ourselves because Sheffield could wipe that lead out in five heats on Thursday, but that was just to make sure they were on their toes!
“We were good tonight to send them packing but we may need every one of those 18 points on Thursday – but we’ll worry about that when it comes around.”
PICKERING – IT’S STILL POSSIBLE
SHEFFIELD captain Josh Pickering insists his side are fully capable of scoring the points required to reach another KO Cup Final, despite going down by 18 in the first leg of the semi-final at Leicester.
Pickering said: “Throughout the middle I felt like it was relatively close and then towards the end they finished strong. But they’ve still got to come to us on Thursday and we’ve been quite dominant at home this year.
“So hopefully we can turn things around, that’s the aim of the game, and I do feel collectively 1-7 we can do enough to do the job.”
STARS TAKE THE WIN
KING’S Lynn manager Rob Lyon says a six-point lead over Ipswich at the halfway stage of their KO Cup semi-final gives them something to fight for at Foxhall – even though he had been hoping for a somewhat wider margin of victory.
Lyon said: “Six points isn’t ideally where we wanted to be, but we’ve proved already this year that we can go to Ipswich and do some damage, so I think it’s all to play for.
“The win was the main thing, and at least we’ve got a lead to go with and something to fight for. We’ve definitely got the riders to do it, and it’s up to them to produce it on the night and take us through to the Final.”
WITCHES TARGET TURNAROUND
IPSWICH boss Ritchie Hawkins says his injury-hit side need to put Monday’s 48-42 defeat at King’s Lynn behind them and focus on the return leg of the KO Cup semi-final at Foxhall on Thursday.
Hawkins said: “Adam (Ellis) had a tough night, but I think he rode better than the couple of points he scored but he had machinery problems and never got a break tonight.
“I’m sure he will make up for that on Thursday and earn those points back. Obviously when you are already a couple of riders down that puts pressure on everyone else.”
THE WEEK AHEAD…
BELLE Vue will seek to turn the tables on Birmingham after a four-point defeat on Monday when the sides meet again in Manchester on Thursday… meanwhile the second legs of the KO Cup semi-finals take place with Leicester 18 points up on holders Sheffield as they head to Owlerton whilst King’s Lynn visit Foxhall with a six-point advantage over Ipswich… it’s back to league action on Monday with the Lions and Tigers meeting again at the Hydroscand Arena, Beaumont Park… King’s Lynn host Birmingham with the Brummies’ recent paid of wins taking them level on points with the Stars in the league table.
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SCOTT’S DREAM DEBUT
REDCAR boss Gavin Parr heaped praise on new signing Jody Scott after the teenager put in a super performance on his debut as the Bears got the better of Oxford.
Scott completed his night with a crucial 3-3 where he and team-mate Danny King kept Sam Masters at the back when the Cheetahs’ captain was taking a tactical substitute ride.
Parr said: “Jody rode brilliantly, he didn’t get fazed in Heat 14 that Sam Masters was behind him and he rode that race perfectly alongside Danny.”
CHEETAHS TAKE CONSOLATION
OXFORD manager Peter Schroeck was satisfied with the performance if not the result as the Cheetahs went close at Redcar, going down by just six points in a hard-fought encounter.
Schroeck said: “We could make plenty of excuses if we wanted to – we missed Cam (Heeps) and Jonas (Knudsen), while Jordan (Jenkins) had problems with his clutch and he’s still getting himself back towards 100 per cent fitness.
“But, at the end of the day, we pushed a strong Redcar side around their own track. I believe we’re a strong team too and tonight we proved that.”
ROWE CLINCHES THE WIN
POOLE star Anders Rowe admitted it was a case of win or bust in Heat 15 as the Pirates were taken to the wire by Plymouth in their MAXiCab KO Cup quarter-final.
Rowe scored 13+1 from five rides and won the final race ahead of Nicolai Klindt when the Gladiators had the chance of setting up a Super Heat.
He said: “In Heat 15 I thought I had really thrown it away there. I thought I was going over… over the top of Nicolai, or going over the dog track!
“It was good but it’s not about me, it’s about the whole team and a big shout out to Darryl Ritchings. He was really, really good tonight and it will have grown his confidence.”
SCORPIONS STEP IT UP
SCUNTHORPE captain Simon Lambert took the positives from a 49-41 defeat at Oxford last Wednesday in which both he and the team as a whole showed major progress from an early-season MAXiCab KO Cup defeat at the same venue.
Lambert said: “It was a massive improvement from our performance here in the cup, when we lost by 20 points and we were a bit lucky to only lose by that much.
“I had a much better night. I believe I’ve sorted out all my issues now. Oxford is not my favourite track by any means, but I’ve come here and got paid eight and scored in every race. It’s probably the first meeting this season when I’ve enjoyed riding my motorbike.”
MORE VICTORIES FOR VICTOR
EDINBURGH star Victor Palovaara made it an astonishing 78 points from four home matches with his 20-point haul in the 49-41 MAXiCab KO Cup win over Glasgow last Friday.
But Palovaara admits the inclusion of new signing Michael Palm Toft from this weekend may somewhat change the dynamic at Armadale!
He said: “With Michael coming in I might not get seven rides next week, maybe just four plus heat 15 if I am riding well enough, but the important thing is that the team does well.”
TIGERS STILL HOPEFUL
GLASGOW boss Cami Brown believes their MAXiCAB KO Cup tie with Edinburgh is still wide open with a late 5-1 from Chris Harris and Kyle Howarth at Armadale reducing the deficit to eight points at the halfway stage.
Brown said: “Chris and Kyle have given us a big hope to comeback in the second leg. They were both excellent all night.
“Chris was absolutely exceptional. It was vintage Bomber as he produced several incredible passes.
“We did really miss the scoring power of Dan Thompson. Drew Kemp came in and did a decent job and Leon Flint had two cracking rides. Leon came up with a big Heat 14 win for us.”
BANDITS: ONE IN, ONE OUT
BERWICK have rewarded Jack Smith for his efforts since coming into the team as a short-term replacement by extending his contract for the remainder of the season.
Smith was signed as cover for Bastian Borke who had struggled on his comeback from injury, and the arrangement has now been made permanent.
But the Bandits have problems in their other reserve position as Dayle Wood is facing at least a month on the sidelines with a broken bone in his wrist after a recent crash at Oxford.
THE WEEK AHEAD…
OXFORD have a busy week to come as they host Glasgow at Cowley on Wednesday before making the trip to Edinburgh on Friday… Poole are on Northern tour again with the Pirates visiting Glasgow on Friday and then they then move on to Workington on Saturday afternoon… Scunthorpe and Berwick clash twice in 24 hours starting at the Eddie Wright Raceway on Friday with the return the following evening… Plymouth are back in action after a fortnight’s break as they face Redcar at the Coliseum on Saturday.
WSRA NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE/NATIONAL TROPHY LATEST
CHARGERS ON TOP
OXFORD are top of the WSRA NDL table with three wins out of three in 2025, the latest being an emphatic 58-32 success at Belle Vue.
The Colts were hampered by No.1 Will Cairns crashing out, but the Chargers put up a superb performance and are dreaming of a second title in three years.
In-form Jacob Clouting said: “To come away and get a good victory, it’s looking good for us and hopefully we can keep it going and win another league title with the Chargers.
“We’ve got a great team and everyone is cracking on and riding well.”
EAGLES BACK WITH A WIN
KENT overcame a Thurrock Select in a hard-fought challenge clash at Iwade on Sunday to set themselves up well for the resumption of their NDT campaign later this month.
Manager David Graveling said: “A great day on track for the team, everybody contributing points, Nathan (Hargrave’s) first ever heat win, Mickie (Simpson) a very capable guest and young Hadyen (Watts) getting a taste of team speedway. And of course, our first trophy.”
THE WEEK AHEAD…
THERE’S a big meeting at Wimborne Road on Wednesday as Poole host the Harbour Masters Championship which is their event in the National League Riders’ Development Individual series.
Line-up: Max James, Will Cairns, Aston Vale, Sonny Springer, Jacob Clouting, Cooper Rushen, Jamie Etherington, Vinnie Foord, Ben Morley, Ben Trigger, Arran Butcher, Mickie Simpson, Darryl Rtichings, Eli Meadows, Charlie Southwick, TBC.
FIXTURE PICTURE…
WEDNESDAY JUNE 4:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP: Oxford v Glasgow 7.30
NATIONAL LEAGUE RIDERS’ DEVELOPMENT INDIVIDUAL (HARBOUR MASTERS CHAMPIONSHIP): Poole 7.30
THURSDAY JUNE 5:
ROWE MOTOR OIL PREMIERSHIP R1: Belle Vue (43) v Birmingham (47) 7.30
PREMIERSHIP KO CUP S/F 2nd leg: Ipswich (42) v King’s Lynn (48) 7.30, Sheffield (36) v Leicester (54) 7.30
FRIDAY JUNE 6:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP: Edinburgh v Oxford 7.30, Glasgow v Poole 7.30, Scunthorpe v Berwick 7.30
SATURDAY JUNE 7:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP: Berwick v Scunthorpe 7pm, Plymouth v Redcar 7pm, Workington v Poole 3pm
MONDAY JUNE 9:
ROWE MOTOR OIL PREMIERSHIP R1: King’s Lynn v Birmingham 7.30, Leicester v Sheffield 7.30
WEDNESDAY JUNE 11:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP: Poole v Redcar 7.30
THURSDAY JUNE 12:
ROWE MOTOR OIL PREMIERSHIP R1: Ipswich (44) v Sheffield (46) 7.30, Oxford (31) v King’s Lynn (59) 7.30
FRIDAY JUNE 13:
FIM GRAND PRIX OF GREAT BRITAIN, MANCHESTER: Belle Vue 7pm
SATURDAY JUNE 14:
FIM GRAND PRIX OF GREAT BRITAIN, MANCHESTER: Belle Vue 7pm
SUNDAY JUNE 15:
WSRA NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE: Middlesbrough (42) v Edinburgh (48) 3pm
NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT TROPHY: Kent v Plymouth 12pm
MONDAY JUNE 16:
ROWE MOTOR OIL PREMIERSHIP R1: Birmingham (29) v Sheffield (61) 7.30, King’s Lynn (37) v Ipswich (53) 7.30
DRAKE’S USAC INDIANA MIDGET WEEK OPENER