BRITISH SPEEDWAY WEEKLY BULLETIN 2025/29

Feature photo by: JEFF HIGGOTT…IPSWICH are celebrating league title glory for the first time in 27 years having been crowned ROWE Motor Oil Premiership champions.
The Witches secured the title at a packed-out Foxhall on Thursday where the local and wider community turned out in their thousands to help them over the line.
But an eventful second leg of the Grand Final against Leicester was far from plain sailing, with numerous incidents and disqualifications in the first half of the meeting.
Ipswich eventually won 46-43 on the night for a seven-point aggregate victory, with Jason Doyle top-scoring on ten points, whilst visiting skipper Max Fricke (13) and Douglas (9) won three races apiece.

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

HARRISON IS U19 CHAMPION
LUKE Harrison was crowned British Under-19 Champion after a dramatic meeting at Workington on Saturday when the title went down to a three-rider run-off.
Harrison edged out Jody Scott and Cooper Rushen in the decider with all three riders having finished on 12 points.

That came after home racer Vinnie Foord had crashed out of what would have been a title-winning lead in Heat 19 when he suffered mechanical failure.
Harrison said: “After my third ride, when I’d dropped three points, I thought I was out of contention. There’s no Final, it’s highest scorer wins.

“I just started riding for fun like normal. But then after all five rides, I ended up in a run-off for first place. At that point, I switched back on a bit, and then managed to win the race-off. Luckily I had my gating boots on and I got out of the gate first.
“I finished third in the Under-21s at Glasgow earlier this season and second in the Under-19s at Oxford last season, so it was good to win the meeting today.”

ROWE MOTOR OIL PREMIERSHIP LATEST
 
TITLE GLORY FOR WITCHES
IPSWICH manager Ritchie Hawkins summed up the mood of elation in the camp as the Witches lifted the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership title at a packed Foxhall on Thursday.
The Suffolk club had waited 27 years for a league title, which came when current promoter Chris Louis was team captain back in 1998, and Hawkins paid tribute to the support they have received.
He said: “It was an amazing night for everyone involved at the club.

We had a massive crowd in, thank you to everyone who came to support. We have won it for them and all the local sponsors.
“We have terrific support here and we have waited a long time for this moment. I am so proud to be part of a team that have managed to bring a trophy back.
“You saw how much the club means to the town when you saw how many people were here tonight and how happy everyone was. What a week for the town and I am truly blessed to be a part of it.”

LIONS MISS OUT
LEICESTER boss Stewart Dickson says it has still been a good season for the Lions despite a second successive Grand Final defeat.
The Lions came much closer to Ipswich than they had to Belle Vue in 2024, and after winning the KO Cup earlier in the season it continued an upward trajectory since they rejoined the top-flight in 2023.

Dickson said: “Last year we deserved to lose; this year, I think it was there for us if we wanted it, and we never grabbed it, which will make it difficult over the next couple of days.
“But that’s sport, and we’re not losers, we’re runners-up, and well done to Ipswich. They will get the plaudits and rightly so, they will celebrate and enjoy their night, but I’m very proud of my team for getting to the Final two years running.
“I was desperate not to roll over and lose 55-35 tonight, and the guys kept it going and did their best. We’ve had a good season, it just could have been a great season.”

CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP LATEST

PIRATES ARE CUP KINGS
POOLE boss Neil Middleditch is hoping the MAXiCab KO Cup Final victory over Redcar is the first part of another trophy treble in 2025.
The Pirates won home and away against the Bears, clinching the silverware with a convincing performance at the ECCO Arena last Friday.

Middleditch said: “It is quite impressive isn’t it, to have 32 trophies and a couple more to shoot at this season. It’s amazing to be fair, but this was a great result by the lads. They came here to do a job and they did the job and some.
“It’s always nice to win trophies and I think you have got to feel a bit for Redcar. They’ve come close a couple of times now, and Gavin (Parr) has the same sort of passion for his club as I have for Poole.
“But at the end of the day I’m here to do a job, and we got the job done. We could have won it just a little earlier than we did, to be fair.”

TIGERS NEED TEAM EFFORT
GLASGOW boss Cami Brown says he will need his team firing in all departments if they are to clinch a second league title in three years.
The Tigers led the Cab Direct Championship standings and they now face Poole in the Grand Final, the team they defeated to clinch the title in 2023.

But this year the Pirates have already won at Ashfield in the league and they also eliminated Glasgow in the semi-finals of the MAXiCab KO Cup.
Brown said: “Every race and every point counts now. Every rider needs to deliver and they all know that.
“The boys are massively determined to bring silverware to Glasgow. The hunger has blown me away, now we just need it on the track.”

BSN SERIES FINAL DATES
REDCAR have progressed to the Final of the BSN Series and will now face Poole in what is scheduled to be the final team silverware of the 2025 Championship season.
The SCB confirmed the regulations for an abandoned meeting with the aggregate scores level had been applied after the Bears’ semi-final with Glasgow was halted with one race remaining after an incident in Heat 14 where thankfully there were no major injuries.
Redcar will now host Poole in the first leg of the Final on Saturday (6pm) with the return at Wimborne Road on Wednesday October 22.

LATE BOOST FOR SCORPIONS
BRITISH Under-19 Champion Luke Harrison was pleased to bring some success to Scunthorpe after a season to forget at league level.
The Scorpions were unable to mount a play-off challenge in the Cab Direct Championship and their season ended in late August, although Harrison was one of their shining lights of the campaign.

He said: “It’s no secret that it’s been a tough year for the Scunthorpe Scorpions this season, and it’s nice to have a trophy that I can take back to the Scunthorpe fans and cheer a few people up.
“It’s been a successful year for me. My scores in the Championship have increased significantly, I got a job in the Premiership halfway throughout the season, and I’ve finished third in the British Under-21 and now first in the British Under-19, as well as representing Great Britain in the Speedway Of Nations 2 in Poland.”

THE WEEK AHEAD…
POOLE and Glasgow battle it out for the Cab Direct Championship title this week with the first leg at Wimborne Road on Wednesday, whilst the title will be decided at Ashfield 48 hours later on Friday… Regardless of the result, the Pirates will be back in action at Redcar on Saturday in the first leg of the BSN Series Final.
 
WSRA NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE/NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT TROPHY LATEST
 
TOP TALENT AT FOXHALL
IPSWICH turn the spotlight on the future in their final meeting of the season on Thursday as they stage the Tiger’s Academy Open featuring 16 of the sport’s top prospects.
A packed night of racing will feature 20 qualifying races, a semi-final and Final, and a special Pairs race in an event which is a tribute to John Louis.

Witches manager Ritchie Hawkins said: “We have some great youngsters in the meeting and it will be an awesome experience for them.
“It will be a new track for a lot of them to ride and there will be some exciting races, and after last week hopefully a big crowd can create a great atmosphere for the last speedway at Ipswich this year.”

ACADEMY RESERVES THE KEY
EDINBURGH boss Scott Wilson praised his reserves Mark Parker and Lee Harrison for their combined total of 10 (paid 13) in a narrow 46-44 win at Belle Vue on Sunday.
Parker was making his first appearance since taking a break from the sport earlier this summer, and the result lifted the Monarchs Academy to second place in the league table.

Wilson said: “Our reserves were going to be crucial and both delivered today. For Mark to come back after such a long break and score paid-eight was excellent, and Lee led two Championship calibre riders for three-and-a-half laps in Heat 4. He took real confidence from that and finished with a good score. “It’s a nice way to end the season. We finish just one point short of top spot which tells the story of how well the team have done.”

THE WEEK AHEAD…
LEICESTER face Belle Vue in the WSRA NDL on Sunday with second place in the table their reward if they can win the match… Meanwhile there is NDT action at the Coliseum on Saturday as Plymouth host Kent, where a win for the visitors would secure runners-up spot… Ipswich stage the Tiger’s Academy Open at Foxhall on Thursday, and the 250cc section of the British Youth Championship concludes at Leicester on Sunday after the NDL match.
 
FIXTURE PICTURE…

WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 15:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP GRAND FINAL 1st leg: Poole v Glasgow 7.30

THURSDAY OCTOBER 16:
TIGER’S ACADEMY OPEN: Ipswich 7.30

FRIDAY OCTOBER 17:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP GRAND FINAL 2nd leg: Glasgow v Poole 7.30

SATURDAY OCTOBER 18:
BSN SERIES FINAL 1st leg: Redcar v Poole 6pm
NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT TROPHY: Plymouth (36) v Kent (54) 7pm

SUNDAY OCTOBER 19:
WSRA NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE: Leicester (48) v Belle Vue (42) 2pm
BRITSH YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIP (250cc): Leicester (follows WSRA NDL fixture)

WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 22:
BSN SERIES FINAL 2nd leg: Poole v Redcar 7.30

THURSDAY OCTOBER 23:
FOUR TEAM TOURNAMENT: Oxford Select v Coventry Select v Swindon Select v Wolverhampton Select 7.30

SUNDAY OCTOBER 26:
NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT TROPHY: Leicester (41) v Kent (47) 2pm
BRITISH YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIP (500cc): Leicester (follows NDT fixture)