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I can tell you from vast experience from a mechanics point of view from heat 1 to heat 15 the meeting feels like it’s going 1000 mph, you rarely get to see any other races except your riders races and you are constantly working on the bikes inbetween his races and if you are a trusted and long term mechanic (not just for a night )the intensity is amplified because their race win/loss becomes your win/loss and from a riders point of view depending on how involved you are with your bikes the meeting ticks along just nicely, it is a completely different experience to the fan experience and far more intense

I don’t know what Flint you’ve been watching. Here are his home scores for the season……4+2 8+1 14+1 5+1 8 9+1 11+1 7+1 9+1 6+2 8+2 9+1 13+1 8+3 and 8…….and in my view he’s committed to improving further. I’d definitely have him back.

Who do you mean by they? Most comments and criticism about the lack of passing came from non Glasgow fans. Why would 'they' criticise or comment on a meeting where there was passing? Incidentally by posting twice you have used unnecessary bandwidth.

In case anyone hasn't got X or Instagram. Could watch this all day 😁 Love the way Lewi just runs in half way through the race lol.

If it was up to me 100% British Premiership Speedway would be back on Sky Sports unfortunately it’s not my decision I am however having words in the correct ears . There may be some interest if the right deal was available and if a decent league sponsor could be found to support with the production costs as Speedway was not planned into 2026 plans . I am a great advocate of BSN however it’s very much a niche closed product so can foresee some potential issues with sponsorship for clubs

The scheme should be in the championship and it should be two riders to be honest. There is one promoter that wants two in the Premiership, which to be honest im not wholly against IF the riders were a good enough standard, which they aren’t. One thing I think should happen is there should be a bigger reduction in UK riders averages at the end of the season instead of the 2.5(?) percent. Even if it was a higher discount for riders under 24 to encourage teams to sign them.

Dark Chocolate covered Hob-Nobs or Rich Tea's 🤔

Says in the SS that we not moving up until we have a bit more of a guaranteed long term future at the stadium.

Where does this Poole don't like it wet come from? I've seen Poole win away when track was wet and home team weren't interested but Poole got stuck in 🤷

Results: https://live.baansportfansite.nl/event/1113/dsc-lelystad-vs-middlesbrough-tigers-lelystad.html Photo's: https://www.baansportfansite.nl/nieuws/2763/engelse-les-in-de-polder-middlesbrough-tigers-winnen-in-lelystad-met-overtuigende-64-26

yup Premier and National Development 🙂

Might need to send out a search party for our good friend @TheWellBehavedWorrall last seen or heard from pre 7.30pm on Friday night. 😁

A typical well meaning rule to try and even up the league more... And then also, typically in UK Speedway fashion, they eff it up by allowing the No1 pick to say "I'm not riding there"... (Which I get if offered more money and have local sponsors elsewhere).. In the US draft system, the bottom team gets several concessions from the teams who want their pick, should they not want to use that player .. Eg The team with the highest average last season would have needed to offer Birmingham either money or a rider/riders.. Instead we had Birmingham being out of their depth again which did them, nor Speedway, any favours . Basically. Either do it properly, or don't use it at all... Personally, out of their depth No7's do nothing for the sport, nor them, in any league ..

Disagree. The riders know what they’re signing up for. If you want a chance to ride in the top league then you enter the draft. If you’re drafted somewhere then you ride for the team who pick you. If you don’t like it, don’t enter the draft.

A speedway race is the ideal sport for this short attention span, TikTok generation. The racing itself has always been the attraction, the convoluted rules that go with it are a massive turn off. The sport needs TV coverage. TV doesn’t need speedway. It’s on the people running the sport to make it a product a television company (ideally multiple) desires and wants to throw money at. Television puts out things people want to watch, it isn’t there to promote or sustain the sport. That’s the job of the promoters. TNT don’t want speedway. They had it, let it go and inherited it again as part of the Eurosport/Discovery deal. Meetings take too long to run. That’s a sport wide problem. Some of it is necessity, some could be improved upon. For the sake of the fan in the stadium and to make the sport more palatable for the TV. A highlights show could be very interesting, showcasing the best of the weeks racing. The hurdle there would be gaining permission of whoever has the right to film/broadcast meetings. Presumably BSN. They’d need to be paid well for it, because they’d basically be giving the best of their product away for free each week otherwise.

Ben has said in numerous interviews that he is flying back first and Zach going back after he's done all his meetings.

Its a thankless task having just missed out on the league, but having to drop 5.54 points if as anticipated the limit stay at 40 points. Poole face similar but not so bad at 4.53 points but maybe softened a bit if Rushen does replace Starke which saves 2 points. It's a difficult juggling act having had 4 H/L near enough as Nagel proved a clever/shrewed signing on 5 points but a future star (when he did turn up and ride). Almost pulled it off as they did with Tarasenko a few seasons back. Personally enjoy the close season thought provoking - rumouring and forum contributors ideas on team make up for the following season. No doubt the Glasgow management are already planning &scheming for a decent team in 2026 despite the headache of building to a 5.54 lower limit than the existing teams final GSA. Must admit looking at the final Lge GSA's its a real head scratcher even as a Poole Supporter to find the right combination of riders to get to 40 points. That with knowing at least 2/3 riders who won't be there next season due to either performance or having to shed 4.53 points off the current squad. We need a strong Glasgow as its good for the support. I say that as a Poole supporter 😀

It's only Ben who's flying home to Oz on Monday, Zach is staying until the season is over

So what the Premiership needs, much like football, is a massive injection of money so riders don’t have to double up and ride in the championship. Then championship teams would be desperate to ride in the prem for money, but you then add promotion and relegation so you have jeopardy . That would be the catalyst for some good racing and more risk, bringing fans in as they would see some meaning to the meetings. Not this joke of any team choosing what league they want to ride in. A lot of championship fans on here comment “let the premiership run how it wants and we will do our own thing” so let that be the case. No doubling up, all top riders ride in Prem only due to money being bigger, and championship and NDL can do their own thing, see how many then want to make the jump up to the top league. The Prem should be the ‘promise land’ and all champ teams want to be in it, dilute their teams and league but limiting the top riders only in the prem and see how many comments change then, as all they want to do is dilute the prem to be their level of riders.

Put too much weight on it has to go.

Fully agree. 7.93 Home average. Very happy with that.

From Parken, Horsens, Cardiff, Narodowy, Ullevi, Ratina, Toruń, Wrocław and the two at Stockholm... We (actually You) are now talking Glasgow for a Grand Prix and how a 100k euro APD prevents Ipswich of all places from hosting a Grand Prix. APD's can be leased you know, and Bradford can host a Grand Prix with a 1 meter run off area. All Bradford needs is a promoter willing to do it and they'll change the rules. They've done it for Horsens previously.

But I fear the world series will be as one-sided as the NLCS.

Yes but to pick Howarth who hadn't gated all night was clearly a poor decision.

First season he had in the Elite, scored 20+1 from reserve for Eastbourne, loved the place.

Agree, unless your rider is riding at 1 or 2 you may get to see heat 1 but other than that its the 4 or 5 rides your rider is in. Its is an adrenalin buzz working in such an environment and after the rider I worked with retired, watching from the stands just no longer gave me the same buzz watching..

Even if it was postponed they prob try on Friday. 27th is next Monday.

Kemp is under 8. Klindt is the only rider over 8 at Plymouth And as Scunny, Workington and Edinburgh have no riders over 8 there would be vacancies at these clubs. This appears to be reasonable proposal to share out the league's top riders. There are 9 teams and 9 riders over 8.

So if its postponed which could happen looking at weather forecast he may not be available.

The trouble we have now is the result of the relaxing of the average conversion rate between the two leagues and doubling up becoming a free for all about 15 years ago. Before then there was a noticeable difference in standard between the leagues (all three leagues that is). Sounds like that one was driven by rider power, but the promoters also allowed it to happen. There’s now not enough riders of the standard of team spots available. I think this is half the problem, nobody wants the sport to be watered down. It feels like a necessary evil though, because those “good enough” riders just don’t exist in large enough quantities so we’re lumbered with the current incredibly flawed system.

Zach cook will not be at Poole next season not doing championship.

Think it was a hell of a performance considering the pressure cooker atmosphere of less than 24 hours earlier at Glasgow and the effort put in to win the League Play off. Can you imagine winning the FA Cup/Prem Lge or similar and having the players turn out 24 hours later for another final. Riders etc had little time to prepare bikes & set ups etc bearing in mind the also 3.5 hour drive from Glasgow assuming the riders didn't even touch home base most likely after the celebrations of Friday. Would have been happy even with an 8 point defeat after all that. No surprise some had a few mechanical gremlin after all that. Fortunately a good few days to recover and sort out any issues and set ups for Wed last math of the season.

What you have just described is the current NDL.....

Does that mean he is (technically) withholding his services? The season doesn't officially end until 31st October and he's booked his flights before that date? What are the rules regarding this situation?

Rory the tiger, another potentially on the chopping block?

Of course anyone that is picked doesn’t have to accept it that’s a given. I think that’s unlikely however. The financials and the chance to ride with world class riders would be too tempting to turn down. It also doesn’t matter how much Louis would want him unless he signed him at number six which wouldn’t happen. If Ipswich give up their retention of Edwards, they’d have to sit and wait for their pick and I’m sure someone would go for Rushen before Ipswich got their chance. Unless Cooper did what Jenkins did last year, reject the advances of other clubs that picked them first and then accept Ipswich’ offer when it’s their turn! Another reason why this rising star scheme doesn’t work and is a total nonsense. No rider should be forced to ride where they’re told, that should NEVER have been the case and good on Jenkins for sticking to his guns and riding where he wanted. Scrap it.

It's absolutely possible. everything is possible. you're viewing it from a rider/machinery perspective. that approach has got us this far. it's time to start to think about selling the public a product they want not what the makers of the product want to provide. I can guarantee you riding or being a mechanic or a TM/Promoter at a speedway meeting is way more exciting than it is attending one as a supporter. these people probably sit there and scratch their heads as to why nobody turns up as they probably all have a great time. race finishes 2 minutes on next heat starts. have a 5 min grading break after heat 5 and 10 if there's been no natural stoppages. make the participants adapt to that. will it effect the quality of the on track action? I doubt it.

Congrats to Poole, especially as they won a superheat away from home to seal the deal, no mean feat. Well done to Glasgow for finishing top and for providing a great track for a wonderful night of speedway.

exactly this. the product is poor. aside from the standard of on track action it's 15 minutes of action dragged out over 2 hours. it's supposed to be a high octane extreme sport. unless you're into tractors then it's dull. if the endless track grading improved the on track action then fair enough but invariably it doesn't seem to make any difference. 15 heats is a 60 minute job 20 heats 90 minutes. Stats are huge in all sports now. they even create stats in football to make it seem more interesting or fill more TV time. speedway is made for stats yet there's zero content. make the match format more flexible. people love watching live sport and having opinions on what subs to make, or what tactics to use or who to bowl from what end etc. just say everyone has to have a min three and max six rides and let the team manager work out the best line up. let the trailing team select the gates. you know stuff that would add to the interest. you still need exciting on track action and it doesn't get much better than at Belle Vue but if you're waiting 5 , 10, 15 mins between heats with nothing to discuss then you lose all momentum. It's like when you go to a gig and the set list gets the crowd singing then the band play a new one and everybody goes for a piss. speedway is like that but with 5 minutes silence between each song while the band tinker with their instruments and some random person in overalls sweeps the stage.

When we signed Villads we never new his teams in Poland and Denmark would reach their playoffs finals plus a few of his missing meetings were only because his polish teams had a rain offs and they just put it on the following week and Poland seem to get priority

Not if it were reorganised to give them the opportunity to compete - too many riders who are Premiership doubling down into the Championship.

From some of the posts above, it looks like we could be losing a Russian but gaining a Rushen….

Glasgow won the "Entertainment Championship"... Far more important in a pro sport to win that. Like winning the "fair play award" or "the most improved player" in football...

The majority of them from last night would be fodder in the Championship too....

The best deal is the one that gets the sport to the largest number of non speedway fans. But how to achieve this? My opinion is that the sport is not suitable for live TV but ideal for a hour long, prepack, magazine type programme. You focus on the best races from a couple of meetings with additional races that are talking points from the previous week. In a 52 minute programme (plus 8 minutes of ad brakes which is the maximum allowed) as the spot ruling will not be applied to speedway due to viewing figures you should be able to cover this. I would get BSN to prepare it and offer it prepacked to Channel 4 or 5. Being on a FTA channel but as highlights will not impact on people attending a live meeting as much as the present deal does. And you stand a chance of attracting new fans as its not behind a paywall. The key is to get a broadcast (TV) partner as a streaming service only engages existing speedway fans.

PASS Whoops shouldn't have said that word to a Poole fan. 😁

TNT will certainly not lose any sleep if dropping Speedway.They are well into British BSB,World BSB and Moto GP. Which is run very professionally compared to their Speedway.

I spoke to him this morning and he said he had planned on riding in the UK next season, but changed his mind after last night. He said he’s not flying thousands of miles to play follow the leader. He said he wants to entertain fans. He also said tell LisaColette to stop talking rubbish in the Poole v Glasgow topic. He then said Ben Cook buys his race suits from Build-A-Bear.