BRITISH SPEEDWAY APRIL 24, 2025

(SPEEDWAY 1)

COOK LEADS PIRATES’ VICTORY

POOLE eased to a 58-32 win over Plymouth in their BSN Series home opener with skipper Zach Cook scoring a paid maximum at Wimborne Road.

Gladiators reserves Lasse Fredriksen and Ben Trigger gave their side an early lead with a 5-1 in Heat 2, but the Pirates quickly took control and raced to seven 5-1s of their own from Heat 6 onwards.

Cook scored 14+1 whilst Richard Lawson (12+2) dropped his only point to Nicolai Klindt in the opening race, and Lewis Kerr collected ten from four rides. Klindt led the Plymouth resistance with 12 from six.
Pirates boss Neil Middleditch said: “In the first seven heats it was nip and tuck but then the boys stretched their legs a little bit, and I was pleased with the final result.

“Zach really has stepped up, and it’s good to see. He’s leading by example, making good starts and riding really well.”
Gladiators manager Garry May said: “From Heat 8 onwards Poole just stepped up a gear, and I was carrying too many riders in the end.
“But that’s life, we’ll come back again, we’ve got them on Saturday (at home) and we’ll have another go.”
 
(SPEEDWAY 2)

SHEFFIELD’S redeclared line-up goes into action for the first time when the Tigers host Oxford at Owlerton tonight (Thursday).
Justin Sedgmen and Lewis Kerr, both of whom have had previous spells in South Yorkshire, have re-joined the club, and come into a side which has recorded two big home wins so far in the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership.

By contrast the Spires are still seeking their first points, although they are boosted by being able to track a full-strength line-up after early injuries and Polish commitments which ruled captain Maciej Janowski out on Easter Monday.

Sheffield manager Simon Stead said: “Oxford have had a bad start to the season and they’ll be bitterly disappointed with how things have got going – but you’re only ever one good result from ending such a streak and turning things around.

“They’ll see this as an opportunity I’m sure, with us putting out a new-look line-up with a couple of new riders bedding in.
“But collectively we will welcome Justin and Lewi into the team, integrate them straight away and we know what they can both offer to us at this level.”
Oxford boss Peter Schroeck said: “We just need to find that little bit extra – in terms of the Spires, we are being tested at the moment.”

SHEFFIELD: Jack Holder, Anders Rowe, Chris Holder, Justin Sedgmen, Josh Pickering, Lewis Kerr, Leon Flint.

OXFORD: Rohan Tungate, Erik Riss, Charles Wright, Peter Kildemand, Maciej Janowski, Francis Gusts, Luke Killeen.

(SPEEDWAY 3)

IPSWICH look to keep the ball rolling at the top of the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership when they face Birmingham at Foxhall tonight (Thursday).
The Witches have won four out of four in the league so far and their two home matches in league and KO Cup have resulted in bumper scores of 67 and 65.

Former Ipswich racer Keynan Rew is available for the winless Brummies after a bout of food poising, whilst another ex-Witch Danyon Hume is the ‘reduced facility’ guest for the absent Matej Zagar as the club look to resolve paperwork delays.
The meeting will also feature a special three-heat second half as Ipswich mark 40 years since the passing of club legend Billy Sanders.

Ipswich boss Ritchie Hawkins said: “We have had two home meetings so far and they have both been big victories in front of big crowds, and the boys are putting on a show.
“I think Birmingham can put up a tougher test than last time out and we can’t relax off, we need to be on top of our game.

“There are a few riders in the Birmingham team that either haven’t seen Ipswich before or for a little while, so that will be interesting. We have got to make sure we are fully focused and keep this run going.”

Birmingham manager Chris Adams said: “It’s going to be a hard meeting, we know that. But the lads are looking forward to it and all I can ask from them is that they dig deep right from the start and do their best.
“Matej will be a big miss, and that situation is very frustrating, but we’ll just go there, try and take it to them and see what we can do.”

IPSWICH: Jason Doyle, Danny King, Adam Ellis, Tom Brennan, Emil Sayfutdinov, Dan Thompson, Jordan Jenkins.

BIRMINGHAM: Tobiasz Musielak, Jonas Jeppesen, Danyon Hume, Keynan Rew, Michael Jepsen Jensen, Antti Vuolas, Jason Edwards.

(SPEEDWAY 4)

EDINBURGH are searching for a replacement reserve after youngster Max James informed the club he wishes to stand down from the side for the foreseeable future.
The Monarchs have been granted a 28-day facility and have booked Dayle Wood to guest in Friday’s home match against Glasgow in the BSN Series, but they say they will attempt to fill the vacancy as soon as possible.

Co-promoter John Campell told edinburghmonarchs.co.uk: “Max sounded very down when I spoke to him. He’s clearly had a crisis of confidence and has been worrying about upcoming meetings.

“It’s a shame that it has come to this as he showed such promise when he joined us, but maybe that crash at Birmingham a couple of weeks ago was the final straw for him.
“We all hope that Max can recover his confidence and return to racing in due course. We wish him all the best for the future.”

(FIXTURES)

THURSDAY APRIL 24:
ROWE MOTOR OIL PREMIERSHIP R1: Ipswich (47) v Birmingham (43) 7.30, Sheffield v Oxford 7.30

FRIDAY APRIL 25:
BSN SERIES: Edinburgh v Glasgow 7.30, Redcar (44) v Scunthorpe (46) 7.30

SATURDAY APRIL 26:
BSN SERIES: Berwick v Edinburgh 7pm, Plymouth (32) v Poole (58) 7pm