British GP’s Belle Vue Fri/Sat 13th/14th June

[OveFundinFan]

5 hours ago, midlandred said:

How about…. every country holds qualifying rounds for their own riders, the best of whom progress to further stages of qualifying, then to area finals and then a last round of qualifying meetings, such as Nordic, European, British etc finals, culminating with 16 riders, for a one-off meeting to decide who’s the World Champion - no points carried forward from qualifying, everything decided on the day (night) in front of a massive crowd.

Do you think this might catch on?

Basically thas what they did through the 60's.and 70"s. Go on Wikipedia and search out speedway world championships. It's interesting to how the development of the eastern block countries developed ie USSR with Plechanov and Samaradov, and Poland with Wyglenda and Woryna, Germany with Josef Hofmeister, with an occasional East German and Czechoslovakian.

[RoundTheBoards]

1 hour ago, OveFundinFan said:

Basically thas what they did through the 60's.and 70"s. Go on Wikipedia and search out speedway world championships. It's interesting to how the development of the eastern block countries developed ie USSR with Plechanov and Samaradov, and Poland with Wyglenda and Woryna, Germany with Josef Hofmeister, with an occasional East German and Czechoslovakian.

[MattB]

On 6/15/2025 at 7:38 PM, R87 said:

Sadly many similarities between Ward and Moran.  Both talented, but extremely unlikable as individuals 

I doubt many would agree that Kelly Moran was "unlikeable", but each to their own i guess.

[proud panther]

On 6/14/2025 at 6:27 PM, THE DEAN MACHINE said:

I hope there is another John postlewhite out there with a vison for the GPs but if we are at BV for the long run how do we attract the missing 1000s to belle vue ? 

Personally, after attending both nights, I will definitely be there next year if it is held at Belle Vue. Lots of problems, but the racing was much better than Cardiff. Hopefully a few lessons will be learnt, & most problems could be sorted with more staff, in my opinion.

[proud panther]

On 6/15/2025 at 3:03 PM, gjcone44 said:

spent afternoon in city centre, before going to speedway load of  girls/women walking round with their arse cheeks hanging out. was quite a sight. 🤪

Parklife music festival, 80,000 people apparently. 

[AFCB Wildcat]

5 hours ago, proud panther said:

Personally, after attending both nights, I will definitely be there next year if it is held at Belle Vue. Lots of problems, but the racing was much better than Cardiff. Hopefully a few lessons will be learnt, & most problems could be sorted with more staff, in my opinion.

I'm sure you'll be back next year, along with 6399 others. I think Dean's point is that no matter how good the racing is, and even if all the problems encountered this year are resolved, how do you attract the missing thousands when you only have a 6400 capacity and there isn't room for them? 

The event can't grow at Belle Vue unless the capacity is increased. Unfortunately that can't be justified for a once a year event.

 

 

 

[1 valve]

7 hours ago, AFCB Wildcat said:

I'm sure you'll be back next year, along with 6399 others. I think Dean's point is that no matter how good the racing is, and even if all the problems encountered this year are resolved, how do you attract the missing thousands when you only have a 6400 capacity and there isn't room for them? 

The event can't grow at Belle Vue unless the capacity is increased. Unfortunately that can't be justified for a once a year event.

 

 

 

Ideally for a British GP, There needs to be a track like the NSS situated in a stadium that can hold a minimum of 15000 seated fans. However, we all recognise, this sort of venue is not available especially if a permanent track is a pre-requisite.

So, we are left with two choices.
1) Stick with the NSS and accept that at best 7000 will be the max capacity and that includes standing.
2) Find a stadium that can fit a track larger than Cardiff in it but not at a ridiculous cost to hire.

Regarding the 2nd "option" does anybody have a suggestions for a current location with a sufficient footprint to fit a "larger than Cardiff" track in it? 

A longer term solution could be Brandon, should  of course the stadium become available. If it does and with no plans for greyhound racing to resume then the existing footprint incorporating the dog track would provide the opportunity of proving a NSS type/size of track and a much larger spectator capacity circa 20K




 

[Fromafar]

50 minutes ago, 1 valve said:

Ideally for a British GP, There needs to be a track like the NSS situated in a stadium that can hold a minimum of 15000 seated fans. However, we all recognise, this sort of venue is not available especially if a permanent track is a pre-requisite.

So, we are left with two choices.
1) Stick with the NSS and accept that at best 7000 will be the max capacity and that includes standing.
2) Find a stadium that can fit a track larger than Cardiff in it but not at a ridiculous cost to hire.

Regarding the 2nd "option" does anybody have a suggestions for a current location with a sufficient footprint to fit a "larger than Cardiff" track in it? 

A longer term solution could be Brandon, should  of course the stadium become available. If it does and with no plans for greyhound racing to resume then the existing footprint incorporating the dog track would provide the opportunity of proving a NSS type/size of track and a much larger spectator capacity circa 20K




 

If the FIM and Sponsors  are happy with 6000,I don’t see any reason to go elsewhere.Didn’t here much complaints regarding people not being able to get tickets plus wasn’t a full house on the Friday.

[1 valve]

3 hours ago, Fromafar said:

If the FIM and Sponsors  are happy with 6000,I don’t see any reason to go elsewhere.Didn’t here much complaints regarding people not being able to get tickets plus wasn’t a full house on the Friday.

I agree that most probably the various vested organisations were happy with the attendance on both nights especially Saturday which was the original date for the Manchester GP. As we know, the Friday event was a replacement for Cardiff and clearly the losses incurred last year were avoided this time around.

However, as a newsworthy spectacle an attendance of 7k does not compare with ones of 20k plus so if the objective is to avoid losses maybe even make a small profit then by all means keep to the NSS as a venue but say goodbye to the opportunity of creating worthwhile awareness of the event and future significant sponsorship. 

[mikebv]

2 hours ago, 1 valve said:

I agree that most probably the various vested organisations were happy with the attendance on both nights especially Saturday which was the original date for the Manchester GP. As we know, the Friday event was a replacement for Cardiff and clearly the losses incurred last year were avoided this time around.

However, as a newsworthy spectacle an attendance of 7k does not compare with ones of 20k plus so if the objective is to avoid losses maybe even make a small profit then by all means keep to the NSS as a venue but say goodbye to the opportunity of creating worthwhile awareness of the event and future significant sponsorship. 

Cardiff ran at a loss, hence it got pulled..

There was no "significant sponsorship" of the events, hence they lost money...

They lost around 20,000 fans over a decade...

A "successful" GB GP has almost zero positive impact to the sport in the UK...

With an "unsuccessful" one having the same zero negative impact..

Outside of Poland the crowds are generally below 10,000 so the NSS is on a par with them..

Maybe the East Stand could get another 1000 or so added for next year..? 

[Fromafar]

14 minutes ago, mikebv said:

Cardiff ran at a loss, hence it got pulled..

There was no "significant sponsorship" of the events, hence they lost money...

They lost around 20,000 fans over a decade...

A "successful" GB GP has almost zero positive impact to the sport in the UK...

With an "unsuccessful" one having the same zero negative impact..

Outside of Poland the crowds are generally below 10,000 so the NSS is on a par with them..

Maybe the East Stand could get another 1000 or so added for next year..? 

Would agree with you on that.

[mikebv]

2 minutes ago, Fromafar said:

Would agree with you on that.

It truly baffles me why some people see the GB GP as something that can help stimulate awareness of the domestic product..

Discovery will have some of the best media press releasers around, and yet the GP got the same MSM coverage that a Kent v Plymouth NDL match would get...

Barely 20,000 fans attend all the tracks in the UK, so 6,000 or so, with the vast majority being UK Speedway fans, is a decent number for the event..

Next year, with maybe only one GP, could possibly mean cheaper tickets given one nights less accommodation costs..

Hopefully they don't get GP2, meaning more costs, but a much harder sell...

[Triple.H.]

7 hours ago, 1 valve said:

Ideally for a British GP, There needs to be a track like the NSS situated in a stadium that can hold a minimum of 15000 seated fans. However, we all recognise, this sort of venue is not available especially if a permanent track is a pre-requisite.

So, we are left with two choices.
1) Stick with the NSS and accept that at best 7000 will be the max capacity and that includes standing.
2) Find a stadium that can fit a track larger than Cardiff in it but not at a ridiculous cost to hire.

Regarding the 2nd "option" does anybody have a suggestions for a current location with a sufficient footprint to fit a "larger than Cardiff" track in it? 

A longer term solution could be Brandon, should  of course the stadium become available. If it does and with no plans for greyhound racing to resume then the existing footprint incorporating the dog track would provide the opportunity of proving a NSS type/size of track and a much larger spectator capacity circa 20K




 

Queen Elizabeth Stadium, though the rental costs would be high. 

But IMO a GP in London would sell well, fantastic transport links, plentiful hotels, if you can't afford Centralish hotels use public transport to travel out of the City.

London is a big draw for supporters from around the world. Who would probably make the GP part of a longer holiday to the UK and Europe.

Plan it ahead and invite Prince William, he likes motorcycles and lives locally, though I doubt we'd see him on the Jubilee line.

Edited yesterday at 05:14 PM by Triple.H.

[ShanoXtra]

41 minutes ago, Triple.H. said:

Queen Elizabeth Stadium, though the rental costs would be high. 

But IMO a GP in London would sell well, fantastic transport links, plentiful hotels, if you can't afford Centralish hotels use public transport to travel out of the City.

London is a big draw for supporters from around the world. Who would probably make the GP part of a longer holiday to the UK and Europe.

Plan it ahead and invite Prince William, he likes motorcycles and lives locally, though I doubt we'd see him on the Jubilee line.

London stadium is what you mean not queen Elizabeth and I mentioned that before in the thread. 
x1 at NSS

x1 London stadium

two UK SGPs over different weekends to give different options.

[ShanoXtra]

On 6/14/2025 at 10:39 AM, ShanoXtra said:

I have to call you out on this one. You can’t say ‘nobody’ just because you don’t, a lot of people use this as a weekend away to see a new city, especially people from around the world and not just UK. It does make a different to have nice food / drink / build up for atmosphere. SGP is a bigger picture, it should be a festival of a weekend away, for locals who tell the story of Belle Vue being the best track and the best racing it’s something they will defend with honour, and I agree 100% it’s the best racing we have and probably will see this racing calendar. But for some people they would choose Cardiff simply because of the ‘experience’ and there isn’t a right or wrong choice because it’s people personally preference. Also to say ‘Belle Vue is the only place to watch speedway is 2025’ is pretty poor and short sighted and show that you haven’t seen much speedway elsewhere live. Everyone from Ipswich and travelling Sheffield fans would beg to differ after Thursday’s meeting which was miles better than some league meetings I’ve watched at Belle Vue. I would suggest every year for Belle Vue to have a SGP but also SGP to hold another, if possible, at a stadium in UK like London stadium (West Ham) or back to Cardiff if possible so people get a choice. Saying all of that I am very much excited for tonight’s meeting again and loved last night so I’m not hating on NSS at all. It’s a shame they couldn’t get a 5 year contract for a SGP guarantee and then use that money to join the two stadium together instead of the temp stand.

FYI

[THE DEAN MACHINE]

21 hours ago, proud panther said:

Personally, after attending both nights, I will definitely be there next year if it is held at Belle Vue. Lots of problems, but the racing was much better than Cardiff. Hopefully a few lessons will be learnt, & most problems could be sorted with more staff, in my opinion.

Brilliant glad you enjoyed it and so did I watching it on tv but when it’s analysed without rose tinted glasses or as long as I’m ok then it’s all good then the reality is our premier event attracted a crowd of less than 6000 and quite frankly thst is embarrassing and if you ever want speedway to move forward out beyond it’s dwindling fan base then a new Cardiff is needed, bad racing or not, it could maybe run alongside a round at belle vue but BV is at its maximum impact on the general public and is only keeping the already converted happy, this is not anti belle vue and I’m not having a pop at anyone who went and loved it, I just care about the future of our sport and without a vision of some like posslewhite I don’t think it has one , 6000 fans at BV at its best  is 13,000 down on Cardiff at its worst 

Edited yesterday at 06:09 PM by THE DEAN MACHINE

[gjcone44]

the writing is on the wall with the 3 biggest leagues in the world sharing all the top riders

[mikebv]

1 hour ago, Triple.H. said:

Queen Elizabeth Stadium, though the rental costs would be high. 

But IMO a GP in London would sell well, fantastic transport links, plentiful hotels, if you can't afford Centralish hotels use public transport to travel out of the City.

London is a big draw for supporters from around the world. Who would probably make the GP part of a longer holiday to the UK and Europe.

Plan it ahead and invite Prince William, he likes motorcycles and lives locally, though I doubt we'd see him on the Jubilee line.

You have zero chance of making a London GP pay..

You will be talking circa half a million for rental of the stadium, and the riders, mechanics, and FIM "top brass" hotel costs..

The sport in the UK gets barely 20,000 a week if every track ran a meeting..

Wembley was over forty years ago with several tracks in London, and there were well over 150,000 a week attending speedway nationally back then..

London was also a very different place to live, ethnicity wise...

Who is the Albanian and Somalian No 1?

And, if some baulked at the Cardiff hotel prices, London's will be, at best, the same..

The sport in the UK, (without radical change), is beyond saving, given the constant erosion of support over the past two decades, and the constant increases in admission which bust inflation..

A London GP, even if successful, (it has no chance of being so) will make zero positive difference number wise, to the 20,000, and dropping, that attend each week...

Anyone got half a million to spend on a London GP? If so, send me the money and I will do the rest...

[Neila]

On 6/15/2025 at 3:03 PM, gjcone44 said:

spent afternoon in city centre, before going to speedway load of  girls/women walking round with their arse cheeks hanging out. was quite a sight. 🤪

You should see then late at night, all sorts of bits of flesh hanging out 😗

[IainB]

1 hour ago, mikebv said:

You have zero chance of making a London GP pay..

You will be talking circa half a million for rental of the stadium, and the riders, mechanics, and FIM "top brass" hotel costs..

The sport in the UK gets barely 20,000 a week if every track ran a meeting..

Wembley was over forty years ago with several tracks in London, and there were well over 150,000 a week attending speedway nationally back then..

London was also a very different place to live, ethnicity wise...

Who is the Albanian and Somalian No 1?

And, if some baulked at the Cardiff hotel prices, London's will be, at best, the same..

The sport in the UK, (without radical change), is beyond saving, given the constant erosion of support over the past two decades, and the constant increases in admission which bust inflation..

A London GP, even if successful, (it has no chance of being so) will make zero positive difference number wise, to the 20,000, and dropping, that attend each week...

Anyone got half a million to spend on a London GP? If so, send me the money and I will do the rest...

You make a lot of sensible points, I'm not sure about the 20,000 thing though, there's probably at least double that who still take an interest in Speedway and will be attracted by a major Speedway event in a major city, Cardiff has proven this, add to that foreign visitors and "the curious" being attracted with proper promotion and I think you could easily be looking at 30,000+. One thing I did notice attending Cardiff down the years was that the demographic was quite different of that at all "normal" Speedway meeting.  They also need to get ticket pricing right, I can't ever remember paying more than £29 to attend Cardiff and only £23 in the final year, which quite frankly was ridiculous, for the cheapest ticket to then be more than double that at a league track in the suburbs of Manchester is equally ridiculous imo.With respect, although Manchester is a city, I can't imagine it's on many people's bucket list of cities to visit, shown by them just about managing to sell out the Saturday night and being quite short of doing so on the Friday. Parken, Copenhagen attracted around 30,000... Vojens 10-15,000, that's the big city effect. 

The London Stadium is the obvious choice, 30,000 at £50 a pop minimum (which is still quite cheap for a major event in the UK and cheaper than the cheapest ticket available in Manchester) brings in £1.5m in gate receipts (minimum) alone, if you can't turn a profit on that, something is seriously wrong with your business (and tbf, at the moment we know there is)

Having said all of that, things will not change for the better while WBD run the series. What Laura Manciet (FIM Speedway World Championships director) and Jean-Baptiste Ley (Motorsport Series Leader at WBD Sports Europe) know about Speedway you could probably write on the back of a fag packet. 

Edited yesterday at 08:24 PM by IainB