davidncohen

Good post, spot on. It's speedway that was behind the times, compared with all other motorsport. Related - I notice there's a thread about Wembley vs. Cardiff - no doubt it'll bring out all the same old arguments, the same old posters, the same old opinions. We've moved on... a long time ago.

Well done GB, enjoyed watching it on the box, although don't think the atmosphere came through as well as it could. Quite a few on this forum admitting they got their predictions wrong, and now a number saying they haven't much hope in the final. Never say never. The format also means that just one or two good heat results can get you right back in it.

Excellent meeting, great racing, incidents, healthy crowd, really enjoyed it. More of this on Freeview, please. It's hard to see anyone stopping Tai in the long run this season.

Same here - stayed with the cricket until the end (fantastic climax, well worth it) and then switched over, thus missing about the first 5 or 6 hears of the GP.

Point taken, especially about the variable aspect of the track.

Q: Can you imagine someone asking the same of a MotoGP or World Superbikes or a similar world motor cycle sport event? A: No. It just wouldn't have got to that stage, but in speedway we seem to get in this position from time-to-time, and sort of accept that it does happen once-in-a-while. Shouldn't be the case, right, we have 20 years experience of what a template for a good GP is.

Yes, there was a lot of publicity for the sport when Tai won, much more than you might expect given the general lack of press coverage in most of the media. However, the effect of this only lasts so long, and you would expect to see some tangable evidence at some point . What's the evidence that it has put more bums on seats in the domestic scene?

Overall, certainly not one of the best GPs. Stadium looked only about half-full to me, so quite disappointing. You know the racing isn't up to much when the commentator says something like "that was a decent speedway race" only once / twice during the meeting. I'm all for taking the sport to new venues, but needs work for next year. This is supposed to be top-draw high-level world motorsport, but this wasn't what I was watching.

Very enjoyable meeting, and great to see a new GP winner (might bring the sport up a bit in his home country) - his interview on the rostrum was great. Crowd looked quite healthy, which hopefully is a good sign. Once again "big time speedway" demonstrates that at the very top end of the sport it's just as exciting as any other big sports - long may it continue.

Couldn't have said it better myself - great post. Like the JT reference

george.m - No, I think your post was clear to me. To be a bit clearer myself, the point is, why even ask the question in the first place? It's coming up for nearly 20 years since the SGP started, and yet we still feel it necessary to ask questions like this. Why? Where does it really get us? Who cares about the people who still want a one-off World Final. Why even give them the media space, the credibility, in the first place? Hope this makes it a bit clearer. Do you think the BBC and all the other media organisations who covered Tai's great success even for one tiny moment asked this question? The answer is no. So why should we bring it up and give anyone the opportunity? It's a bit like asking would the stars of the 60's have beaten today's current crop, given equal motor bikes (No, it's OK, no-one has to answer this :-)

Actually, it's topics like this that hold Speedway back, continuously focusing on what was, Yes, world final nights under the twin towers were fantastic occasions, but speedway was probably the only big time motor sport that _didn't_ have a grand prix system to decide it's world champion. We've moved on - a long time ago, actually. OK, the British Final meant a lot more back then, but so what - it's just part of the rich historical tapestry of the sport, doff your cap to it, remember some great meetings, but it's in the past. It's swings and roundabouts, and not much stands still - we've now got something that is among the best motor sport on two wheels around and long may it continue.

Have to say, I've watched a number of GPs on-line this year, and this was easily the most exciting - top draw dirt-track racing at its best, lots of passing, great crowd. I would say it had as much as all the other GPs in total I've watched this year. Sets up 1st and 3rd place battle quite nicely. Congrats to Herbie, ever the pro. If he delivers the same standard for the rest of the GPs he _could_ possibly sneak a podium place, but it's a big ask.

In terms of racing minutes (start of race to end) then I think stock car racing is far, far better value than speedway.

This topic has certainly strayed a bit, but nevertheless, I have a lot of respect for Jason Crump, and would always want him to do well in the SGP. Really top and decent man, and the SGP will miss him, but as long as there are top-class riders coming through, the SGP will keep on rolling along.

Yes, this is something that I thought might be a good change, rewarding success, i.e. making the semis, will / should make you try just that little bit harder in the 1st 20 heats, knowing you can get extra points for making the semis. Discuss I think looking to other sports can _sometimes_ help. For example, the cycling Tour Of Spain awards time bonuses for stage wins which The Tour de France no longer does - these bonuses really make the whole race much more open and exciting. I think once you have what you deem to be a winning formula (and I admit there are probably still plenty of punters who may not be happy with he SGP formula), then you have to be a bit careful with "tinkering", so I agree with a previous post re expanding the football Euros competition as not necessarily a good idea - it's a good little tight tourney, every game maters (near enough), and no 3rd/4th place play-off.

Some interesting responses and tend to agree that as it's London, might attract more punters. However, I'll pick up on a word that's been constantly used relating to a little sporting event currently taking place in East London, and that is 'legacy'. So, if lots of new punters attend a London GP at the Olympic Park, think it's a fantastic show and want something similar, how are they going to get this, when there is no speedway in London (within M25), and even putting that aside, from a sport that has only produced 1 out of 51 SGP British rostrum places in 17 years, from a sport that gets little or no national media coverage, and from a sport that has not moved with the times in terms of upgrading it's spectator facilities?

Not much else to add, as you've summed it up quite well, and agree from my memories of the 70's period that it was quite often down to whether someone higher up was a bit of a fan, or it caught their eye. It remains to be seen whether GB's great Olympic success has an effect on Olympic sport participation or even TV coverage outside the Olympics, but there's no denying that British speedway success would help enormously. This aspect also cuts through all those people who say "if only they changed the tactical sub system, speedway would be big again etc. etc. etc." ("tinkering" I call it), and have posted several times before on it in various places.

Phil... Does this tell us more about the press, the state of the sport in the UK, or a bit of both?

Great post; very interesting discussion. I have often asked the question: What would the impact be on British Speedway if there was no GB rider starting every GP? And, what would the impact be on the British GP be, if there was only a wild card GB rider. I'm not sure I know the answers, but I'm just thinking of the 'bigger picture'. Actually, with many top riders no longer riding in the UK, I think this shows that the speedway world has shifted somewhat, and therefore, I think the overall impact on the GP would not be too great - but as far as that little meeting in Cardiff once a year goes, could be a different story - maybe? Right now, it certainly is looking like Chris Harris is at the last chance saloon with regard to justification for inclusion in the 15 next year. Also, GB riders success in the SGP qualification rounds hasn't been barn storming over the years, so it would be interesting if it was left to this avenue for a few years to see if Brits could qualify. It kinda reminds me we use to moan about how in the 60's and 70's the continentals always had 5-ish qualifiers through to the World Final, without having to meet the other top boys beforehand, and how their performance just wasn't up to it (bar one or two exceptions - Plech etc.) People in the UK said how unfair this was, given the continentals continued poorer performance at the top level (OK, eventually everyone was brought together in two semis). So, does the same now apply - the GB SGP riders are consistently failing to get to the top, but are still given a berth in the following season's event.

My first SGP at the Millenium stadium: The noise was so deafening that listening to the Sky commentary was a bit of a waste, but the stuff I did hear (mostly analysis) was useful Shame that they started to show some of the post-race interviews on the big screen, but then cut away almost immediately. Some of these would have made things more interesting I was somewhat surprised by just how many empty seats there were, especially the top tier on the home straight - almost totally empty. I just though the place would be a bit fuller Excellent meeting - really enjoyed it - quite a bit of drama - good mix of races, many quite close Holder fantastic - in fact I was surpassed at how far ahead he was in terms of points at the end of the meeting. Just goes to show what a difference one meeting can make (queue discussion around points format for the nth time) Will certainly now be making this a regular gig David

Only watched highlights via YouTube, but was very surprised at the somewhat sparse crowd at this year's Italian GP - the crowds seem to vary enormously, but I'm sure better venues could be found.

Thanks. Is this is the case then I don't really want to be watching the clock, which is a shame, and certainly don;t want to miss any of the action. I'm kinda regretting never having been to a Cardiff SGP (haven't had a car for over 10 years), but I always use to think I'd be watching the action from so far away, up in the stands, that it would take a lot away from the experience (I'm sure there's a pile of people who'll now testify that this couldn't be further from reality). I saw GPs at Bradford and Hackney, but this is now a long time ago. I'll have to have a think about it.

@#318 Triple.H. Thanks. I presume the meeting is due to end at 8pm - in your experience is this about right, or do they sometimes go on longer. Any idea how far the station is from the stadium, or how long it would take if walking. Thanks, David

I've tried to check out coach and train travel from London, as I'm thinking of going (would be my first GP). There don't seem to be any coaches or trains back after the event (looked at national express and train line). Can anyone advise me on the best way to and from Cardiff by public transport from central London (without having to stay overnight)? Thanks in advance. David