mikebv Posted June 26, 2025 Report Share Posted June 26, 2025 Let's do some numbers... For two GP riders it must be (based on info from a few years ago), a minimum, circa £3k a night... With two, it is £6k... So, £12k needed in sponsorship and attendance, (and it may be more), from your home meeting to pay them for the next away meeting too.. And, if rumours are true, for some, £3k is on the lower end of the scale... Taking BV as an example, if you removed Brady and Dan next year, and ran with five rider teams, (the same lads as now), then that would be a huge saving... 10 meetings @ £12k is massive... You could bank £6k a night from the current outlay, and use the other £6k in knocking six quid off 1000 tickets which might entice those less regulars, or even those who stopped going, to get to the NSS.. Watching the Polish top tier stars is truly a different level, but, the brutal truth is they don't "pack em in" enough to justify the outlay, and, beyond them, you still have the Mickey Mouse aspect that dilutes what their incredible talents deliver. Good to read that Chris Louis is involved in the future plan. And intelligent fella, and one of the very few that seems to grasp what is needed..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sings4Speedway Posted June 26, 2025 Report Share Posted June 26, 2025 11 minutes ago, IainB said: I can't think that speedway would collapse in this country if it was ridden with riders who are committed to it, if Ippo want to run Thursday night with riders that commit to that... and just as importantly away fixtures also, great! Difficult to see anything wrong with that. But where are the riders coming from? The prem is struggling to track 7 similar standard rising stars, the champ clubs are scratching for 2 pointers and whats left of the NL is tracking riders that are realistically second half level. Numbers in youth rounds are hardly encouraging and the amateur scene has been hammered into the ground. The dilution of the sport started 10+ years ago and now the price is being paid. For every Cairns or Rushen you need another half a dozen "lesser but competent" riders coming through, the sports journeymen that keep the places filled and they are what are very much lacking at present. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The H Man Posted June 26, 2025 Author Report Share Posted June 26, 2025 1 hour ago, THE DEAN MACHINE said: I believe BSN pay each clubs a % and as it can be streamed world wide so people in places like Australia or USA are contributing to the clubs and I subscribe and so I’m contributing to teams that I wouldn’t necessarily attend so yes it may discourage people from actually attending it is at least contributing to the clubs Correct! 👍 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IainB Posted June 26, 2025 Report Share Posted June 26, 2025 12 minutes ago, Sings4Speedway said: But where are the riders coming from? The prem is struggling to track 7 similar standard rising stars, the champ clubs are scratching for 2 pointers and whats left of the NL is tracking riders that are realistically second half level. Numbers in youth rounds are hardly encouraging and the amateur scene has been hammered into the ground. The dilution of the sport started 10+ years ago and now the price is being paid. For every Cairns or Rushen you need another half a dozen "lesser but competent" riders coming through, the sports journeymen that keep the places filled and they are what are very much lacking at present. I think you only have to look at the number of young riders from U21 Championships over the last 10 years or so who have turned away from the sport due to lack of opportunity, mainly due to doubling up. Next year, as it stands at the moment, we're down to 14 tracks. That's: 98 riders for 7 rider teams 84 riders for 6 rider teams 70 riders for 5 rider teams It's going to take adjustments to the race format to give riders a proper progression path instead of being dumped in the top league and allowed to sink or swim. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
THE DEAN MACHINE Posted June 26, 2025 Report Share Posted June 26, 2025 Without going into details or individuals too a point what riders are paid per point isn’t really going to change much,it’s more the extras are getting out of hand Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim G Posted June 26, 2025 Report Share Posted June 26, 2025 15 hours ago, mikebv said: Agree on every point apart from the 15 mins of entertainment... There is zero to keep me entertained during the gaps between racing.. 1970's music? Really? I attended an indoors MX event in MCR ten years ago and every Speedway promoter should have gone to it... The on track action was only a part of the evening.. You could win a mini MX bike, (just £5 a text), and 1000's of dads texted in. (Me being one).. They fired, via air gun, t shirts (all small so kids got them), into the crowd, and my lad got one... Each rider had a merch stall, with shirts, photos, selfies etc.. And Monster Energy Girls... (Ahem)... The guy in the middle kept the evening flowing, the music reflected the hi octane, adrenaline fuelled sport... And I didn't have a clue who anyone was but paid seventy quid for me and my then 12 year old lad... And it was worth every penny.. Some on here say that the gaps between races is a chance to talk with those they stand with and haven't seen since the last meeting, which is fine.. But what do those attending for the first time do? Twiddle their thumbs? A high octane, adrenaline fuelled sport should have an off track package that reflects it... UK Speedway's off track entertainment is truly dire... The Arenacross is an excellent night out and I go and watch most years either at the NEC or Wembley Arena. Normally pay about £40 and it’s 3 hours non stop entertainment and very enjoyable. I took 2 friends this year and who have never been before and both found it brilliant and both will be going back. However before Covid it was starting to get stale as the format hadn’t changed and the crowds were dropping dramatically. So during the Covid break they used the time to tweak the format only a little bit and changed it to a British Championship and got riders like Tommy Searle involved and the crowds are back where they used to be. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
THE DEAN MACHINE Posted June 26, 2025 Report Share Posted June 26, 2025 2 minutes ago, Tim G said: The Arenacross is an excellent night out and I go and watch most years either at the NEC or Wembley Arena. Normally pay about £40 and it’s 3 hours non stop entertainment and very enjoyable. I took 2 friends this year and who have never been before and both found it brilliant and both will be going back. However before Covid it was starting to get stale as the format hadn’t changed and the crowds were dropping dramatically. So during the Covid break they used the time to tweak the format only a little bit and changed it to a British Championship and got riders like Tommy Searle involved and the crowds are back where they used to be. 2020 was the year speedway should of used to rebrand, rebuild and forge a game plan going forward but it didn’t 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
THE DEAN MACHINE Posted June 26, 2025 Report Share Posted June 26, 2025 The sport need an independent governing body more than ever, someone who makes the rules for the competition and the bikes and then promotions and riders join up knowing where they stand, in the case of the riders and their bikes, the independent body say the bikes must have a square wheel( silly analogy) then the riders and tuners can scream all they like but that’s the rule and if you don’t like it go do something else 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolfie456 Posted June 26, 2025 Report Share Posted June 26, 2025 4 hours ago, ShanoXtra said: Gorzow today announced that for the Wroclaw match this Friday night, when you buy 3 tickets you will receive additional 3 tickets for free. Probably because their attendances are down big time this season too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShanoXtra Posted June 26, 2025 Report Share Posted June 26, 2025 2 hours ago, mikebv said: Let's do some numbers... For two GP riders it must be (based on info from a few years ago), a minimum, circa £3k a night... With two, it is £6k... So, £12k needed in sponsorship and attendance, (and it may be more), from your home meeting to pay them for the next away meeting too.. And, if rumours are true, for some, £3k is on the lower end of the scale... Taking BV as an example, if you removed Brady and Dan next year, and ran with five rider teams, (the same lads as now), then that would be a huge saving... 10 meetings @ £12k is massive... You could bank £6k a night from the current outlay, and use the other £6k in knocking six quid off 1000 tickets which might entice those less regulars, or even those who stopped going, to get to the NSS.. Watching the Polish top tier stars is truly a different level, but, the brutal truth is they don't "pack em in" enough to justify the outlay, and, beyond them, you still have the Mickey Mouse aspect that dilutes what their incredible talents deliver. Good to read that Chris Louis is involved in the future plan. And intelligent fella, and one of the very few that seems to grasp what is needed..... But you still wouldn’t turn up for the “qualifiers” with or without Dan or Brady so Belle Vue would collapse ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShanoXtra Posted June 26, 2025 Report Share Posted June 26, 2025 1 hour ago, Wolfie456 said: Probably because their attendances are down big time this season too. Yeah that’s due to how poor the club has been run and the fans going against the old president. Next year if they stay up it will go back to normal. In Poland people say they can’t afford the Extraliga matches… they are equivalent to £12 English money to see the best league in the world! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StarBoy Posted June 26, 2025 Report Share Posted June 26, 2025 Just now, ShanoXtra said: Yeah that’s due to how poor the club has been run and the fans going against the old president. Next year if they stay up it will go back to normal. In Poland people say they can’t afford the Extraliga matches… they are equivalent to £12 English money to see the best league in the world! I’ve banged this drum before that UK speedway shouldn’t be double the price of Poland for half (if not less) the entertainment. However, attendance money is secondary in Poland. The league is sponsored by the state-owned energy company with revenue of over £15bn. It’s the equivalent of British Speedway being sponsored by British Gas, which we all know is just farcical to think… 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShanoXtra Posted June 26, 2025 Report Share Posted June 26, 2025 27 minutes ago, StarBoy said: I’ve banged this drum before that UK speedway shouldn’t be double the price of Poland for half (if not less) the entertainment. However, attendance money is secondary in Poland. The league is sponsored by the state-owned energy company with revenue of over £15bn. It’s the equivalent of British Speedway being sponsored by British Gas, which we all know is just farcical to think… It’s true. PGE are massive there is no denying and the sponsorship money heavily outweighs the gate money. Also everyone should remember that local councils have a set budget for sports to help out, normally 50% speedway / 50% football, I know Gorzow is more like 65/35 due to stal being far greater than stilon. Our councils can’t sort out the roads and day to day running so no chance they would help out our speedway. I know Thurrock and Essex and soon Cambridge councils will all be in heavy debt even with the government funding. Goes back to the root of the people… too many people in the country illegally or people sponging off the government from other peoples hard earn tax. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikebv Posted June 26, 2025 Report Share Posted June 26, 2025 3 hours ago, THE DEAN MACHINE said: 2020 was the year speedway should of used to rebrand, rebuild and forge a game plan going forward but it didn’t I am still truly amazed they didn't... It was a complete free hit to reset the sport and relaunch it... Nobody even lost money as they were shut, so what an opportunity to spend some of that cash on some proper relaunch marketing... That they came back with the "same old, same old", you can only assume they felt nothing needed to change... Which, if correct, is also truly amazing... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OGT Posted June 26, 2025 Report Share Posted June 26, 2025 Anyone fancy talking about *checks thread title* Birmingham Speedway? 🤔 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ouch Posted June 26, 2025 Report Share Posted June 26, 2025 19 hours ago, mikebv said: Agree on every point apart from the 15 mins of entertainment... There is zero to keep me entertained during the gaps between racing.. 1970's music? Really? I attended an indoors MX event in MCR ten years ago and every Speedway promoter should have gone to it... The on track action was only a part of the evening.. You could win a mini MX bike, (just £5 a text), and 1000's of dads texted in. (Me being one).. They fired, via air gun, t shirts (all small so kids got them), into the crowd, and my lad got one... Each rider had a merch stall, with shirts, photos, selfies etc.. And Monster Energy Girls... (Ahem)... The guy in the middle kept the evening flowing, the music reflected the hi octane, adrenaline fuelled sport... And I didn't have a clue who anyone was but paid seventy quid for me and my then 12 year old lad... And it was worth every penny.. Some on here say that the gaps between races is a chance to talk with those they stand with and haven't seen since the last meeting, which is fine.. But what do those attending for the first time do? Twiddle their thumbs? A high octane, adrenaline fuelled sport should have an off track package that reflects it... UK Speedway's off track entertainment is truly dire... Neil plays hardly any 70’s stuff (not that there’s anything wrong in that), if fact on more than one occasion his has had his knuckles wrapped as he often will play tunes taking the Micky out of the opposition or the ref following a heat. I’m more than happy with the none racing entertainment but maybe I’m easily pleased. The pre meeting interviews with managers and captains, Chases antics, the rider interviews during grading, Chases white line challenge and the 50/50 (over £8000 paid out each season) during the interval, the replays on the bend 2 big screen and the post meeting press conference where I can meet and chat with the riders is all great. Add in the warm up & cool down lap(s) where heat wins are celebrated are all part of it for me. I’m also sad enough to read the programme if there is any kind of lull in proceedings. The MX sounds great, have you got the Manchester fixture list as I’ll give it a go in the next fortnight, even if it is twice the cost of watching The Aces? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
THE DEAN MACHINE Posted June 26, 2025 Report Share Posted June 26, 2025 20 hours ago, mikebv said: Agree on every point apart from the 15 mins of entertainment... There is zero to keep me entertained during the gaps between racing.. 1970's music? Really? I attended an indoors MX event in MCR ten years ago and every Speedway promoter should have gone to it... The on track action was only a part of the evening.. You could win a mini MX bike, (just £5 a text), and 1000's of dads texted in. (Me being one).. They fired, via air gun, t shirts (all small so kids got them), into the crowd, and my lad got one... Each rider had a merch stall, with shirts, photos, selfies etc.. And Monster Energy Girls... (Ahem)... The guy in the middle kept the evening flowing, the music reflected the hi octane, adrenaline fuelled sport... And I didn't have a clue who anyone was but paid seventy quid for me and my then 12 year old lad... And it was worth every penny.. Some on here say that the gaps between races is a chance to talk with those they stand with and haven't seen since the last meeting, which is fine.. But what do those attending for the first time do? Twiddle their thumbs? A high octane, adrenaline fuelled sport should have an off track package that reflects it... UK Speedway's off track entertainment is truly dire... On the subject of music played I think that karlito guy is rubbishe, at the German GP god know what music he was playing but nobody engaged with it, young or old, I’ve nothing against they guy personally although he does love himself too much, the conversation overheard on a bus in Germany was hilarious, the lady couldn’t shake him quick enough but he is trying to be woofy and his music taste is well not for the masses let’s put it that way, if you had polish tv you would hear the euro pop garbage that is played non stop on their music channels but you go to polish speedway and it’s rock music blasting out, mainly 80s rock too, you are never going to please all but some “DJs” know how to connect with the audience and clearly sone don’t 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LisaColette Posted June 26, 2025 Report Share Posted June 26, 2025 (edited) 31 minutes ago, THE DEAN MACHINE said: . Edited June 26, 2025 by LisaColette Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolfie456 Posted June 26, 2025 Report Share Posted June 26, 2025 3 hours ago, ShanoXtra said: Yeah that’s due to how poor the club has been run and the fans going against the old president. Next year if they stay up it will go back to normal. In Poland people say they can’t afford the Extraliga matches… they are equivalent to £12 English money to see the best league in the world! I was in Wroclaw last week and paid £15 a ticket but some tickets are £30 by the starting gate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
THE DEAN MACHINE Posted June 26, 2025 Report Share Posted June 26, 2025 For those who get the speedway star, my point about bikes going no faster these days despite the money spent is on page 23 and just to add heat 1 at Sheffield tonight is the same time as Hans Nielsen in 1985 at owlerton 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.