BRITISH SPEEDWAY MAY 21, 2026
(SPEEDWAY 1)
BEWLEY’S BAD BREAK
BELLE Vue’s Dan Bewley has confirmed he suffered a broken femur and compressed vertebrae in his back from his crash in Denmark on Wednesday.
The Aces favourite is set for an extended period on the sidelines due to the injuries which occurred on his 27th birthday – yet he has also been able to take a philosophical stance given that the accident could have had even more severe consequences.
Bewley fought back from a devastating crash at Workington much earlier in his career back in 2018, and now he will be on the recovery trail once again.
He said: “It could have been worse, so I am grateful for that. But I am absolutely devastated.
“I was entering my prime, probably enjoying speedway more than I have since I was 16.
“Thank you to my team, my clubs, my sponsors and everyone who has supported me through thick and thin. Thank you for all the messages, it means a lot but I am really struggling to read them at the moment.
“I’ll keep you all updated when I have some news, but for now I’m being treated well in Denmark.
“I knew straight away that I broke my leg, but thankfully it’s a cleaner break than last time.”
(SPEEDWAY 2)
HOLDERS Poole are through to the MAXiCab KO Cup semi-finals after a commanding 55-34 win over Oxford for a 31-point aggregate victory.
But the result did come at a cost for the Pirates, who saw Fraser Bowes crash out of his second ride and he was taken to hospital complaining of lower back pain.
Richard Lawson (13+1), Zach Cook (12), Will Cairns (11) and Lewis Kerr (10) all scored double figures for the Pirates, with guest Nick Morris reaching 10 for the visitors.
Pirates promoter Dan Ford apologised to supporters for the delay to the meeting after the Bowes crash, with remedial work completed on the track.
He said: “It has been a really challenging evening and I just want to say thank you so much to everyone. I’m really, really sorry for tonight. I’m so disappointed in what we put out there in terms of the track preparation.
“No excuses – we will put our hands up, we absolutely got it wrong. Full credit to the riders for doing what they could in racing in those conditions.
“Of course, we are sending our messages of support to Fraser, but we are just really sorry and would ask you all to stick with us. We are going to get it sorted.”
Oxford manager Peter Schroeck said: “It’s always a tough place to come down to and then we had all the stops and goes during the meeting. The track was very grippy early on, and even the Poole boys weren’t happy about it. But that’s not an excuse – it was the same for both teams.
“At one stage, it didn’t look too bad for us and we were staying with them. If we could have pinched a win on the night that would have been nice. But Poole were firing on too many cylinders and it ran away from us.”
Poole will now face Berwick in the semi-finals with Plymouth taking on Redcar in the other last-four clash.
(SPEEDWAY 3)
NORTHAMPTON will have two debutants when they face Leicester in the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership at the Shaleway tonight (Thursday).
The Foxes have recruited Danish racer Jonas Jeppesen following the broken ankle sustained by Matej Zagar earlier this month, whilst fellow countryman Niels-Kristian Iversen also makes his first appearance after his UK season was delayed by a punctured lung.
Sam Hagon stands in for the home side at reserve with Luke Harrison away on FIM Speedway of Nations 2 duty in Prague, whilst the Lions bring in Lewis Kerr to guest for Dan Thompson who is out with a broken collarbone.
Northampton manager Chris Adams said: “It feels good in camp that apart from our Rising Star change we are now our complete team and can focus on moving forward this year.
“It’s been a tough old start for the guys, who have battled hard so far mostly on the away road, but I’m hoping they get dialled in early and start building on making our home circuit somewhat of an advantage to riding at home.
“Everything takes time and now we are a full side again we just need a bit of patience and time to get settled. Results will come our way, and I’m hoping this meeting will be the start of that.”
Lions boss Stewart Dickson said: “We could have operated rider replacement for Dan, but I felt having a seven-man team away from home on a track we haven’t been to is the right call.
“Obviously we want to secure the aggregate point, but we know there could be more there for us, as we can see from the scores so far at Northampton that there are clearly quality riders there who haven’t quite adapted yet to their surroundings.
“I’m sure that will come in time, but I do think there is an opportunity to maybe grab more than just the aggregate point, and that will be the talk on the track walk.”
NORTHAMPTON: Jaimon Lidsey, Troy Batchelor, Jonas Jeppesen, Niels-Kristian Iversen, Nicolai Klindt, Kye Thomson, Sam Hagon.
LEICESTER: Ryan Douglas, Lewis Kerr, Nick Morris, Kyle Howarth, Sam Masters, Drew Kemp, Dan Gilkes.
(SPEEDWAY 4)
PLYMOUTH manager Garry May is excited at the prospects of a big MAXiCAB KO Cup semi-final next month.
The Gladiators overcame Glasgow in the quarter-finals of the competition and will now face Redcar in the last four, with Plymouth announcing the scheduled league matches between the clubs in June will now switch and become Cup clashes.
That means the second leg will take place at the Coliseum on Saturday June 13, 24 hours after the sides meet at the ECCO Arena.
May said: “These are the meetings everyone wants to be involved in. To have the second leg at home gives us a real opportunity, but we know Redcar will be a very tough opponent over the two legs.
“The boys are determined, focused and fully aware of what’s at stake. We’re one meeting away from reaching a major Final and that should excite everyone connected with the club.
“Our fans can make a massive difference. When the Coliseum gets behind the team it creates a special atmosphere and lifts the riders. We’ll need every bit of support and encouragement possible because this is a huge occasion for the club.”
(FIXTURES)
THURSDAY MAY 21:
ROWE MOTOR OIL PREMIERSHIP R1: Northampton (33) v Leicester (57) 7.30
FRIDAY MAY 22:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP: Scunthorpe v Glasgow 7.30
WSRA NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE: Edinburgh v Middlesbrough 7.30
SATURDAY MAY 23:
WSRA NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE: Middlesbrough v Edinburgh 7.30
SUNDAY MAY 24:
BRITISH UNDER-21 QUALIFIER: Leicester 3pm
CHALLENGE: Buxton v Stoke Potters Select 3pm
