Hackett

"Son of God" to Glasgow ????

British Final at NSS is always an excellent spectacle. The riders obviously like the track and for the fan the action is fast and furious. Ellis was excellent last night and has been riding well in both PL and CL so fully deserved taking the titke + looked very quick. Seemed like a decent bet at 8/1 !!! Bewley was short favourite but as Crumpie said on the microphone he needs to sharpen up his gating but can't doubt his speed when he gets to the front. Impressed with Howarth who gave it a right go on the night + Charles Wright who seemed much quicker and competitive in comparison to the meetings on the TV. Nicholls and Harris both had their moments which was good to see. Disappointments on the night was Danny King who had an off night and as an Eagles fan Lawson and Kerr just a little short on the night.

Eastbourne have always said needs over 1000 to break even - so 1200+ best case scenario. Last couple of meetings to the eye; numbers have been down on the start of the season. Potentially may look better as still limited numbers in grandstand so people scattered around other parts of stadium bends 3+4 .... Shall await statement - all have better idea then.

As much as I dislike him - Speedway needs somebody like Eddie Hearn to promote it. The sport's demographic is dying so needs to attract they younger fan. 15 minutes of racing in 1min bursts should appeal to their attention span. However most stadia is knackered and dated + few promoters will invest in stadia or PA systems to any degree. The sport is a short sharp entertainment so should be easy to package on social media feeds.

Invested ??? They have put gravel in the carpark. Stadium facilities are no different apart from a couple of new sponsors and as for the toilets there are new cubes in the urinal ....

Living in Surrey that would certainly be the case for my family. No more speedway except the SGP Cardiff + SoN.

Expected the meeting to be a lot closer with the Scorpions at the top of the table and the Eagles without Brennan + Newman. The latter has been excellent of late although Keheler did well as a guest considering it was only his second visit to Arlington and when he was riding for Poole he struggled taking a couple of soil samples. Undoubtedly both Ellis + Brennan would of scored more than rider replacement but a decent win for the Eagles and hopefully a confidence building result for the likes of Kennett and Kerr. Although the Scorpions were pretty much a one man team in Jorgensen. The track looked good and a number of riders complimented it in interviews with Kevin Coombes ..... Adam Ellis R/R (TA R) (JS 1') (TJ 3) (SL 0) = 4+1 Tom Brennan R/R (ZK 0) (JE 0) (DK 1) (LK 3) = 4 Hopefully much of the same next week vs Plymouth.

Perhaps the new manager is hoping he can get a few short term letting deals with riders.

Backed Janowski for GP1 which worked out and then went for Sayfutdinov for GP2 close but no cigar. Also wondered what KK would turn up so at 50/1 thought an e/w shout as he has been going ok in Poland. Should of learnt my lesson - never trust KK ...

Was expecting an Eagles victory tonight but Kings booked a decent guest in Howarth. It would seem the reserves and Lewi Kerr not taking a liking to the Kent track. Good to see Edward Kennett with a couple of race wins though. Hopefully Newman's shoulder is ok for Sat vs Scorpions.

Leicester were excellent value yesterday and Dan Thompson at reserve was the difference. Also must applaud the team riding of Dan Thompson by Scott Nicholls in heat 11 . shepherded him for all 4 laps. Many riders would of disappeared into the distance which may of allowed Lewi Kerr to get past but Nicholls was sublime in riding the inside line. Nigel Pearson would of approved hopefully re-run or British Speedway put this up on social media because it was excellent. AS for the track preperation that has been an artform for years at Arlington , I don't see it changing any.

A number of teams are going to struggle with replacing riders this season with the travel limitations. When Len Silver was interviewed at Eastbourne he was quite strong on the fact that Kent Kings would be loyal to riders. Starke and Nicholls was impressive at Arlington but the Kings were always going to be one of the weaker teams in the Championship and Poole one of the stronger as long as the Cooks were up to speed.

The old rolling average conundrum. Hopefully a run of fixtures will help him find some form.

Checking the Speedway Star and it has averages listed as : Lawson 9.63 Lewi Kerr 8.67 Tom Brennan 7.00 Drew Kemp 6.67 Kyle Newman 6.67 Edward Kennett 5.60 Jason Edwards 4.94 Poole are making changes with Zane Keleher heading around the South Coast to Plymouth to take advantage of his higher average. Could Kennett ride at reserve or is that not possible with new reserve system. Did read that only 7 riders in Premiership are not doubling up ; so for any club considering changes due to injury or loss of form there is not a great deal of option.

Could Eagles have used Jake Knight at reserve ????

Such sad news. Condolences to family + friends. An opinionated + passionate Promoter for speedway across the South. RIP Jon Cook

Considering the loyal following that speedway has and the tendency of the supporters to be keen on stats and statistics I am surprised a game like football manager has never really taken off. I appreciate that the sport will never have the following of Moto GP or FIFA on various consoles but I believe a Speedway game in the Football Manager format could of worked and be well received. The mobile game Speedway Challenge has a lot of the graphics and ideas right. Purchase bikes, equipment, vans etc but if you could train and develop the riders that would be an excellent improvement.

Does anyone have a blank SGP racecard or British Final Card link - want to do a virtual Sussex Championship to entertain the kids

RIP Danny .. Such a sad sad day. Condolences to his family and friends. True entertainer on the bike - always gave it 100% even in his NL days. Such a shame.

PREMIER - Lidsey - Douglas - Kildemand Championship - Kemp - Flint - Nicol NATIONAL - Thompson Twins + Ablitt

Drew Kemp was excellent as a guest and opposition rider in the National League at Arlington. Hopefully the OZ Adventure will mean he can start the season in good form and build his confidence from the start. Edwards will need to develop but if he can pick up 4/5 points at home that will be an excellent achievement. Tom Brennan + Kyle Newman give the second strings a solid look.

At those odds - Woffinden / Sayfutdinov . Janowski to make top 3 ....

Opportunity to now buy SpeedwayGB merchandise - bobble hats, pit t-shirts and polo shirts. Other merchandise to follow.

"I can say now, for 100% that we will have the Grand Prix outside of Europe" - Armando Castagna, FIM Track Racing director. Discovery Communications with their Eurosport brand will take over the SGP series in 2022 as a ten year deal with FIM #speedway #SGP #SGP2022

Nicol looks an excellent signing. Possibly one of the most sort after riders in CL on that average. Decent first signing. Should out 2pts on that average.