SPEEDY69

You make some good points there Steve. One problem might be how you cover the smaller countries? As there are only 16 places in total and only 8 available for nomination, where would they come from e.g. UK, Sweden, Denmark, Australia, Poland, USA, Russia, Italy, Germany, Slovenia, Hungary, Norway etc. etc.

The main criteria for the nomination should be whether they can make consistently good starts. As has been evidenced this year overtaking has been rare with most races processional. With the possibility of 3 GPs in Poland next year the organisers are clearly desperate for a Polish World Champion (and the gate receipts!), which despite all the plaudits on their strengths, they have failed to deliver since the early 1970s.

Actually, yes. I went to Latvia this year but wouldn't have if there were no brits to support. The event loses appeal for me. Also, a lot of people are puitting Woffinden forward but isn't he a reserve in the foreign leagues?

I also think there are too many who get in without doing qualifying rounds as such - and I don't mean wilcards, but the riders who finish in the top 8. I think it should be the top three only. There are riders who perform very well in 1 or 2 GPs but poorly in the others but continue to get in top 8. There is too little change from one year to the next and on the current state of motorway tracks & dull racing then the only real points of interest are how the newcomers get on. If this doesn't change I think the series will continue to decline - something I won't be too disappointed about anyway as I've always much preferred team racing.

no need to build for the future in a few years time because by then some new youngsters will replace this bunch and so it goes on - seen it happen in other sports. i think we might surprise a few at peterborough but whatever the ages of any rider, the team should be your strongest one and i don't think it is.

Wow, this must be the first post of yours I completely agree with!! We see it other sports as well, I remeber Cricket went down that road for a long time, putting in players just because they are young. Football the same but that's changed recently and who did most people say was one of the better performers for England - Beckham one of the oldest. You need the best team regardless of age.

Disagree Gemini. I have seen some of Scott's comments on missing the EL and it was to do with a reduced racing schedule, travelling time and time with his family. Poland meetings are on Sundays, Sweden on Tuesdays which makes it fairly easily to plan homelife around. In the EL, you can be called upon to ride on any day of the week, sometmes at short notice due to rain offs and it's this that led to him giving the EL a miss for a year - nothing to do with money.

Ok thanks.

Hi Does anyone know if there is any way to buy tickets for Latvia from the UK other than via a bank transfer (£20 charge!)? If not, are tickest easily available at the track on the day or is this one usually sold out? I have flights and accommodation booked already but any help with this GP would be much appreciated. Thanks Karl

I am a big fan of Scott and of course would love to see him in the GPs again next year - he is certainly one of the more entertaining riders in the series. He has no right to be there next year though as he finished outside the top 8 and didn't do the qualifiers so if they picked others he would gave to accept it, as his fans would. However, the series has nevre been about who are the best current riders in the world - it's a series to attract sponsors, fans & viewers & ultimately make money. The qualifiers for this years series didn't really pull up any trees did they and all three are now out again. Holder failed to get through the qualifiers so if he gets a wildcard, why would anyone else bother doing them? It's not black and white this issue but yes I still think Scott adds to the series and I can't think of many others better who should replace him.

This will now make it the third Polish GP this year and with so much hanging on this meeting I'd have preferred a different venue but I suppose they were short of time. Who will it favour (apart from Gollob), Holta, Nicholls or B Pedersen?

Trouble is, Holder was not good enough to get through the GP qualifying and was knocked out earlier this year. By all means nominate him but as for every nominated rider, there are others who have just missed qualification that could rightly feel aggrieved. Having said that, the qualifiers through the rounds for this years GP haven't really set it alight either - Dryml, Kasprzak, Pedersen?

As far as I'm concerned there is nothing wrong with the tuning side of Scott's equipment, he alwasy has more than enough power, it's the setting up of the bike on GP race nights that seems to be the problem - normally takes at least 2 races to get it anywhere near right. Power does not equal speed and in slick conditions it is the steps the mechanics take to reduce the power of the engine & adjust other parts of the bike that can be the differnece between winning and losing. This is probably why he has taken the step (if true) of refreshing his support team - to be honest I think he was always more competitive when his father looked after his bikes on race day.

How we can improve is if the riders/mechanics etc. can get their machinery suited to the conditions - it was quite obvious on Monday that they were lacking in speed and simply spinning their back wheels in the slick conditions - Bjarne Pedersen simply had so much drive along the straights and many of the other riders and their teams managed to get this right. This area has dogged our lads so often now that it must be very frustrating for them as well - on the TV they did show Scott talikng to Armando Castagna, perhaps he was pointing this out to him Apart from that I'd like to hear the team manager show some belief and inspire the team to do well & not say that his focus is on next year.

Just finished watching and I'm glad I was able to fast forward! Only one or two "races", the rest from the start & was predictable - glad the russians were there to liven it up a bit.

I have been to every Cardiff GP but had to miss this years so watched on telly but I thoughtit was really entertaining stuff. It wasn't all about the starts or who had the fastest machine and those riders who have the skill to cope with a rutted track shone through. Certainly much better than the slick bore fests we usually see on GP nights. Only thing that spoiled it was the ref.

Haven'y the time to read throught the whole thread so not sure if anyone has already said this. I agree that it's the referee who decides upon exclusions but I do believe that NP knew full well that he was beaten to the first turn both by Adams and Bjarne and simply carried on coming across expecting contact, which there was, and falling fairly comfortably expecting a re-run. Although he probably expected an all four back decision I think he still deliberately initiated the contact to get a re-run and that is cheating in my book. However, he made the final and didn't lose as many points on JC as he might have so did the ends justify the means - quite possibly in NPs head but he is playing with fire here and could get seriously injured - even in a simple enough looking bail out.

Rob Everyone is extremely tired of your argument. I notice you never answered one of my points earlier, so I assume you've never raced a speedway bike, so to say that Jonsson could have done anything about the crash is understandable, given your naivety. You are entitled to your opinion, even if it is completely wrong, but I'll let you have the last word as I see you are one of those people. ALL THE BEST!

Let me guess, I don't think you've ever raced a speedway machine? Otherwise you would see this ridiculous statement for what it is.

It was clear to me that the rider at fault for the crash was Gollob. His intention or propensity for taking different lines is irrelevant. Jonsson could not have avoided the crash and therefore did not deserve to be excluded - whether in front or not swerving across another riders path is plain dangerous, especially at the entrance to a corner.

Think it will be between Crump and Adams next year, otherwise I think it will run pretty much as other years, Jonsson, Gollob & Nicholls will have thier moments and Hancock will remain top 8.

He failed at the semi-final stage I believe and didn't make the final, hence there were a lot of riders above him and I don't think that helped his chances.

I don't think they wil select Hampel as he got beaten in the qualifiers (didn't even reach the final). Kazprzak is ahead of him I think for the Polish vote. Peter Oakes is probably right.

Touche! However I don't think it's fair as it depends which track is the last one on the calendar and also the way the gates were picked seemed made up on the night to me - mind you, I haven't read the rule book!! However, I think all three will be in the GPs next year and deserve to be and so the run-off was a little pointless in that sense. I know many didn't think Holta would get a nomination but I think, as Polish Champion, he should have, were it needed.

No agenda here I'm afraid. I'm not concerned how, as long as it was fair and known to all. Whoever was then included out of the three of them then I couldn't argue with it and neither could they.