BRITISH SPEEDWAY WEEKLY BULLETIN 2025/19

Feature photo by: STEVE DIXON…LEICESTER are celebrating major top-fight team silverware for the first time in their history after lifting the Premiership KO Cup on Thursday.
The Lions raced to an emphatic 60-30 win over King’s Lynn at the Hydroscand Arena, Beaumont Park after teams had drawn 45-45 in the first leg of the Final in Norfolk.
With Ryan Douglas (14), Sam Masters (12+2), Max Fricke (10+1) and guest Tom Brennan (9+2) all dropping just one point to an opponent, the hosts enjoyed a largely trouble-free night.

HERE’S the latest news and fixtures from around the tracks up and down the country.

ROWE MOTOR OIL PREMIERSHIP LATEST
 
LIONS CLINCH THE CUP
LEICESTER defeated King’s Lynn to secure the Premiership KO Cup last week – their first-ever item of major top-flight team silverware.
The Lions had last reached the Final at this level exactly 50 years ago, where they lost to Belle Vue, but this time they made no mistake with a 30-point win over King’s Lynn on their home track.
Skipper Max Fricke said: “When I first came here (in 2023) they were just coming back up into the league, and it’s nice to see the team building and growing year after year.
“To come away with some silverware after all the hard work is really cool to see, the fans and everyone here deserve it so much, and it’s great to be part of it.
“Everyone in the team is riding really good, and they all deserve it. It’s great to see how everyone is working so well together behind the scenes, and it’s all come together with such a great collective result.”

STARS SUFFER IN SECOND LEG
KING’S Lynn’s KO Cup hopes were ended by Leicester in the second leg of the Final after a terrific run which had seen them undefeated in the competition prior to that meeting.
Manager Rob Lyon said: “Overall Leicester were the better team over the two legs, and we take nothing away from them, they rode well and deserved it.

“I’ve said to the guys they need to be proud of what they’ve achieved in terms of getting here. I know we haven’t performed that well tonight for various reasons, but to get to a Cup Final is an achievement in itself.
“Sometimes it’s worse when you lose like that in a Final but we couldn’t do anything about it, Leicester were the far better team on the night.”

IPSWICH MAKE A STATEMENT
IPSWICH’S top two of Jason Doyle and Emil Sayfutdinov produced the goods for the Witches to see them to a Super Heat victory at Belle Vue on Monday in a very encouraging team performance for the league leaders.
Manager Ritchie Hawkins said: “Jason and Emil have not had the season they have had in the previous couple of years, mainly due to overcoming injuries, but they are World class speedway riders and are very capable, and they got the job done.
“Doyley is such a great example to the team and to everyone in the sport and he ran two lasts, but he came back in fully focused to get it right in the Super Heat when we needed a second or a third, and that is what we got.”

NO REGRETS FROM LEMON
BELLE Vue boss Mark Lemon admitted it wasn’t quite the night for skipper Brady Kurtz who missed out in a Super Heat as the Aces dropped a home point to Ipswich in a thriller on Monday.
Lemon said: “The Super Heat could have gone either way. I could have put Zach (Cook) out there. But you’ve got the big guns against their two big guns. It seemed like a fair match.

“Brady has had a lot of hype around his position in the World Championship, it takes a lot out of you. He hasn’t been feeling the best. Seven races tonight might have just been a bit too much.
“The bike just wasn’t working for him. He was giving it absolutely everything in the Super Heat.”

FLINT SYMPATHY FOR OLD CLUB
SHEFFIELD’S in-form Rising Star Leon Flint admitted he spared a thought for his old club Birmingham after returning to Perry Barr and striking a 12-point maximum in a huge away win for the Tigers.
Flint said: “We were just making starts tonight and riding the right lines so I was a happy camper.
“Yes it was bumpy, that wasn’t hard to see, and they are trying to do the best they can and you do almost kind of feel sorry for them in some aspects.
“But when it is like that, you’ve just got to attack it harder and fortunately for me the bike was just working on it.”

BAD NIGHT FOR BRUMMIES
BIRMINGHAM remain five points adrift at the foot of the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership after suffering their heaviest home defeat of the season, going down by 28 points against rampant Sheffield.
Brummies racer Paco Castagna said: “We just couldn’t start, we couldn’t gate and fair play to them for finding good set-ups and riding the track better than us.
“I feel like the track was a bit different than normal again; many of us have already complained about it and hopefully it’s going to be a little bit better.”

THE WEEK AHEAD…
IPSWICH will become the first team to secure a play-off place if they avoid defeat at home to Oxford on Thursday… Fellow contenders Sheffield and Belle Vue clash in the War of the Roses at Owlerton on Monday… In-form Leicester are also close to confirming a top four finish as they host Oxford… Birmingham race King’s Lynn in the penultimate meeting at Perry Barr.
 
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP LATEST
 
LAWSON WINS IT FOR PIRATES
POOLE No.1 Richad Lawson completed a 15-point maximum with victory in a tense last-heat decider to see his side over the line against rivals Oxford.
Lawson said: “Right throughout they had a solid team, it was a tough evening and I am just glad we got through.
“Going into Heat 15, Matt Ford came up to me and whispered in my ear and told me what we needed to get, and when you are sandwiched between their two best riders I knew I had to make a good one.
“They out-gated me in the initial run but in the second one Sam (Masters) made a really good one and I just had to battle into that first turn and fortunately I got around.”

MASTERS BEATS THE BANDITS
OXFORD skipper Sam Masters produced a crucial ride from the back in the Cheetahs’ key win at Berwick on Saturday – shortly after he had lost a certain race victory to mechanical trouble.
Masters said: “You only seem to break down when you’re in front, and that happened to me in Heat 8.

“I was pretty frustrated with that – but I made sure that I made up for it in Heat 13, coming from third to overtake both the Berwick boys.
“I didn’t like riding that close to the fence around here to be honest, but it had to be done. Sometimes you have to go for it, and fortunately I didn’t stick the bike through an air bag.”

TIGERS HITTING THEIR STRIDE
GLASGOW manager Cami Brown feels his side are coming into form at just the right time following their 62-28 thumping of Scunthorpe at Ashfield.
Brown said: “All the boys put in a great shift again. I felt it was going to be a hard battle because Scunthorpe have strong reserves, but the boys did a great job.
“It was great to have a full-strength side again, it’s been a long time and they really showed what they are made of.
“We have a big month ahead with a glut of home meetings coming up, three in eight days, and I feel we are approaching that period of time in great form now.”

SOLID MONARCHS WIN AGAIN
EDINBURGH remain in third place in the Cab Direct Championship with their solid form continuing with victory over Berwick at Armadale.
Manager Alex Harkess said: “It’s a bonus to have everything settled with a race to go and the crucial race was Heat 12 when Berwick used their tactical substitute.
“Justin (Sedgmen) knew how important it was and he got the race win, it was absolutely vital. The whole team were very solid but we needed to stop their tactical in Heat 12.”

MULFORD BACK FOR BEARS
REDCAR boss Gavin Parr is pleased to have Jake Mulford returning to the side this week after missing several fixtures due to international commitments.
Mulford could be a key figure having dropped to reserve for the month of August, with the Bears having important matches this week against Oxford and Berwick.
Parr said: “Jake hasn’t ridden for Redcar much this season. He is looking forward to being back as all of this travelling has been tough on him.”

MORRIS WANTS MAJOR IMPACT
BERWICK boss Stewart Dickson says new signing Nick Morris is eager to quickly make up for lost time having recently returned to racing after a two-year suspension.
Dickson said: “Realistically it is a big ask for Nick to come in and score big from the off, two years after his last competitive racing and having given the opposition a two-thirds start on this season too.

“Having said that he was straight off the plane from Australia and on track at Leicester on Wednesday for a practice session alongside Drew (Kemp) which saw him get better and better as the day went despite the obvious jetlag.
“Nick is determined to get right back into the groove where he was one of the league’s top scorers for a number of years.”

SCORPIONS RIDING FOR PRIDE
SCUNTHORPE manager David Howe felt a win over Workington last Friday was a step in the right direction for a side whose dropped points at home have been a major obstacle to sustaining a play-off challenge this season.
Howe said: “It was an encouraging performance and it was much better. We had plenty of race winners, which was nice to see, but we had the back-up as well. We had two riders scoring in most races and very few last places.
“I told the boys before the meeting today that while mathematically the play-offs are still possible, realistically they’ve gone. It’s now about riding for pride and self-worth.”

COMETS MAKE THEIR POINT
WORKINGTON lost ground on the play-off places with double defeat at Scunthorpe and Plymouth over the weekend, although a late rally did see them salvage the aggregate point at the Eddie Wright Raceway.
Comets boss James Denham said: “Both results were disappointing. We didn’t start well enough in either meeting, and when you’re playing catch-up against strong sides away from home, it’s always an uphill battle.
“That said, the fightback at Scunthorpe to snatch the aggregate point showed real character in the team to take the aggregate point, and the lads deserve credit for not letting their heads drop.”

THE WEEK AHEAD…
OXFORD and Redcar meet in a crunch clash of direct play-off rivals at Cowley on Wednesday… leaders Poole face home and away clashes with Plymouth on Wednesday and Saturday as they look to confirm a play-off place… second placed Glasgow are also in form ahead of their home match against Workington on Friday… Edinburgh are third and will look to maintain their momentum at home as they welcome Scunthorpe to Armadale… Redcar are also in action on Friday at home to Berwick, whilst the Bandits face Scunthorpe on Saturday at Shielfield Park… Workington take on Oxford on Saturday as they look to climb the table again.
 
WSRA NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE/NATIONAL TROPHY LATEST
NEW CUBS IMPRESS
LEICESTER debutants Freddy Hodder and Jordy Loftus both scored well in the Fox Cubs’ 53-37 win over Plymouth in the NDT last Sunday.
Manager Jen Crossland said: “I’m very pleased with the performance, Plymouth had a good side and we rode well.

“The moment I saw Jordy’s first score in the NDL I said to Stewart (Dickson) I wanted to bring him into the team, and it was also a superb performance by Freddy which is what we know he can do.
“It’s great for these young lads to get more laps under their belts, more races, and we had some good racing again today and a good result.”

WOOD BACK FOR EAGLES
KENT Eagles are expected to welcome back reserve Charlie Wood when they face NDT leaders King’s Lynn at Iwade on Sunday.
A win of the visitors will be enough to clinch the title, with the Eagles looking for better fortune than in the reverse fixture when they suffered a spate of crashes.
Wood has suffered injuries this season against Leicester and Birmingham but has recently been back on track and should take his place in the line-up.

THE WEEK AHEAD…
KING’S Lynn can secure the National Development Trophy title with a win at Kent on Sunday… in the WSRA NDL, Belle Vue host Middlesbrough on Sunday with that meeting followed by the 250cc section of the British Youth Championship.
 FIXTURE PICTURE…
  WEDNESDAY AUGUST 6:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP: Oxford v Redcar 7.30, Poole v Plymouth 7.30

THURSDAY AUGUST 7:
ROWE MOTOR OIL PREMIERSHIP R2: Ipswich (46) v Oxford (44) 7.30

FRIDAY AUGUST 8:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP: Edinburgh (50) v Scunthorpe (40) 7.30, Glasgow v Workington 7.30, Redcar (42) v Berwick (48) 7.30

SATURDAY AUGUST 9:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP: Berwick v Scunthorpe 7pm, Plymouth v Poole 7pm, Workington v Oxford 6pm

SUNDAY AUGUST 10:
NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT TROPHY: Kent Eagles (35) v King’s Lynn (53) 12pm
WSRA NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE: Belle Vue v Middlesbrough 1pm
BRITISH YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIP (250cc): Belle Vue (follows NDL fixture)

MONDAY AUGUST 11:
ROWE MOTOR OIL PREMIERSHIP R2: Birmingham v King’s Lynn 7.30, Leicester v Oxford 7.30, Sheffield v Belle Vue 7.30

WEDNESDAY AUGUST 13:
CHAMPIONSHIP KO CUP Q/F 2nd leg: Glasgow (41) v Edinburgh (49) 7.30
BSN SERIES SEMI-FINAL 1st leg: Poole v Oxford 7.30
NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT TROPHY: King’s Lynn (40) v Plymouth (47) 7.30

THURSDAY AUGUST 14:
ROWE MOTOR OIL PREMIERSHIP R2: Ipswich v Belle Vue 7.30, King’s Lynn v Birmingham 7.30, Oxford (30) v Sheffield (60) 7.30

FRIDAY AUGUST 15:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP: Edinburgh v Workington 7.30, Redcar v Plymouth 7.30

SATURDAY AUGUST 16:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP: Glasgow (46) v Oxford (44) 7pm, Plymouth v Redcar 7pm, Workington v Edinburgh 6pm

SUNDAY AUGUST 17:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP: Oxford v Workington 6pm

MONDAY AUGUST 18:
ROWE MOTOR OIL PREMIERSHIP R2: Belle Vue (48) v Birmingham (42) 7.30, King’s Lynn v Oxford 7.30, Leicester (36) v Ipswich (54) 7.30