What will 2026 UK speedway bring?

[PersonalResponsibility]

9 hours ago, Ben91 said:

Speedway is literally the only thing in the world that Britain is behind Poland in. That should be evidence enough that we’re not running speedway right here. If we were then we’d be calling the shots. 

In all honesty, we should be thankful it's Poland who's calling the shots. What did we actually manage in the late 90s/00s when GB was in control? Everything Poland has now should've been GB, with the Sky deal, the top riders, the money, etc., etc. We ended up with green helmet covers, pissing money up the wall on one rider, and zero investment in fundamental parts of the sport.

[ShanoXtra]

10 hours ago, Ben91 said:

Speedway is literally the only thing in the world that Britain is behind Poland in. That should be evidence enough that we’re not running speedway right here. If we were then we’d be calling the shots. 

Clearly from someone who has no clue about Poland 😂 immigration they are better than us in, road networks, policing their streets. I would feel safer living in Poland than in England, unfortunately some chose to leave the EU so now we are locked in the country with 3rd world citizens 😁 instead of locking them out of our country.

[1 valve]

10 hours ago, Ben91 said:

Speedway is literally the only thing in the world that Britain is behind Poland in. That should be evidence enough that we’re not running speedway right here. If we were then we’d be calling the shots. 

Your point is well made in terms of the uk could learn a thing or two from Poland in promoting speedway. 
However in terms of minority sports Poland also excel in Volleyball, weightlifting and Ski jumping. 
Poland also produces annually more Steele, coal, ships and food than the UK. Contrary to popular belief Speedway is not Polands favourite sport - football is and that is something the UK - particularly England have the upper hand .

[Ben91]

11 hours ago, THE DEAN MACHINE said:

That’s not true aside from other sports like basketball the country is a far better place than Britain is now, although it still behind financially but maybe that’s the problem, money, interestingly I was just reading about sport in Poland, the article was written last year and it had speedway down as 4th most popular but it was down as motorcycle racing and the most popular pole was Tomasz gollob, no mention of zmarzlik 

 

1 hour ago, ShanoXtra said:

Clearly from someone who has no clue about Poland 😂 immigration they are better than us in, road networks, policing their streets. I would feel safer living in Poland than in England, unfortunately some chose to leave the EU so now we are locked in the country with 3rd world citizens 😁 instead of locking them out of our country.

 

1 hour ago, 1 valve said:

Your point is well made in terms of the uk could learn a thing or two from Poland in promoting speedway. 
However in terms of minority sports Poland also excel in Volleyball, weightlifting and Ski jumping. 
Poland also produces annually more Steele, coal, ships and food than the UK. Contrary to popular belief Speedway is not Polands favourite sport - football is and that is something the UK - particularly England have the upper hand .

Appreciate the points, my post was a bit of a sweeping generalisation. Not meant to knock Poland, I’ve been there plenty and it’s a lovely place (from what I’ve seen), more to the point that we could and should do a better job than almost anyone at promoting speedway. Realistically the sport here has to step back now to achieve that rather than trying to build on sand for yet another winter. 

[ShanoXtra]

1 hour ago, Ben91 said:

 

 

Appreciate the points, my post was a bit of a sweeping generalisation. Not meant to knock Poland, I’ve been there plenty and it’s a lovely place (from what I’ve seen), more to the point that we could and should do a better job than almost anyone at promoting speedway. Realistically the sport here has to step back now to achieve that rather than trying to build on sand for yet another winter. 

Fair enough! I think British speedway is just too far gone to ever bring back to the heights it used to be at. Literally the only way, I personally, could see the sport get bigger than Poland is if a random Saudi got involved in it like golf, boxing and other sports they have ploughed money into, but that was only to grow it in their country and show their country to be good for tourism as well (I know  Turki loves his boxing though). Imagine speedway in the desert… what would have more dust, brum or Saudi? 😂

[marko]

35 minutes ago, ShanoXtra said:

Fair enough! I think British speedway is just too far gone to ever bring back to the heights it used to be at. Literally the only way, I personally, could see the sport get bigger than Poland is if a random Saudi got involved in it like golf, boxing and other sports they have ploughed money into, but that was only to grow it in their country and show their country to be good for tourism as well (I know  Turki loves his boxing though). Imagine speedway in the desert… what would have more dust, brum or Saudi? 😂

Every track would be like Bristol, hmm how did that work out again? 😉

[mikebv]

4 hours ago, ShanoXtra said:

Clearly from someone who has no clue about Poland 😂 immigration they are better than us in, road networks, policing their streets. I would feel safer living in Poland than in England, unfortunately some chose to leave the EU so now we are locked in the country with 3rd world citizens 😁 instead of locking them out of our country.

Afternoon Nigel..

[arnieg]

55 minutes ago, ShanoXtra said:

Fair enough! I think British speedway is just too far gone to ever bring back to the heights it used to be at. Literally the only way, I personally, could see the sport get bigger than Poland is if a random Saudi got involved in it like golf, boxing and other sports they have ploughed money into, but that was only to grow it in their country and show their country to be good for tourism as well (I know  Turki loves his boxing though). Imagine speedway in the desert… what would have more dust, brum or Saudi? 😂

And their tendency to behead journalists might make the job of Speedway Star tricky

[Ben91]

2 hours ago, ShanoXtra said:

Fair enough! I think British speedway is just too far gone to ever bring back to the heights it used to be at. Literally the only way, I personally, could see the sport get bigger than Poland is if a random Saudi got involved in it like golf, boxing and other sports they have ploughed money into, but that was only to grow it in their country and show their country to be good for tourism as well (I know  Turki loves his boxing though). Imagine speedway in the desert… what would have more dust, brum or Saudi? 😂

The Saudi model is to throw money at already thriving sports too. The sport here could thrive again but it will take a long time, a lot of hard work and huge amounts of patience/faith from existing fans. 

The gulf between the 'world class' and top domestic riders is ever widening. Those top domestic riders are also not going to be with us forever (Nicholls, Harris, King, Lawson etc.). The next generations coming through aren't up to their standard in the main. That's part of why those older names are still the top domestic riders in 2025.  Brexit has made it harder to get competitive riders from overseas into the country also.

Despite it not being a popular solution, the way to make meetings more entertaining is to cut the head off the snake and go without the big names. Riders of a lower standard are more plentiful (and cheaper). The more level the playing field in terms of rider ability the more competitive and entertaining the racing should be (in theory, massive asterisk against that point). That's a hard sell to most existing Premiership fans of course, especially when they'll be asked to pay just as much, if not more to get into meetings. Stadium rent will still need paying at the end of the day and won't decrease because the standard of riders has. The kicker being the standard of riders outside of the world class ones is already declining year on year and ageing to boot. So as a governing body own it rather than hoping nobody notices. 

Transparency has to be key. Things being stripped back and rebuilding from sturdier foundations is needed. Tell the fans that is what is happening and why. If you still want a sport to watch in five, ten years then this needs to be done now. People will be more understanding and supportive if kept in the loop. 

[Fromafar]

Tend to agree with Peter Schroeck in SS this week.

[dontforgetthefueltapsbruv]

2 hours ago, Ben91 said:

The Saudi model is to throw money at already thriving sports too. The sport here could thrive again but it will take a long time, a lot of hard work and huge amounts of patience/faith from existing fans. 

The gulf between the 'world class' and top domestic riders is ever widening. Those top domestic riders are also not going to be with us forever (Nicholls, Harris, King, Lawson etc.). The next generations coming through aren't up to their standard in the main. That's part of why those older names are still the top domestic riders in 2025.  Brexit has made it harder to get competitive riders from overseas into the country also.

Despite it not being a popular solution, the way to make meetings more entertaining is to cut the head off the snake and go without the big names. Riders of a lower standard are more plentiful (and cheaper). The more level the playing field in terms of rider ability the more competitive and entertaining the racing should be (in theory, massive asterisk against that point). That's a hard sell to most existing Premiership fans of course, especially when they'll be asked to pay just as much, if not more to get into meetings. Stadium rent will still need paying at the end of the day and won't decrease because the standard of riders has. The kicker being the standard of riders outside of the world class ones is already declining year on year and ageing to boot. So as a governing body own it rather than hoping nobody notices. 

Transparency has to be key. Things being stripped back and rebuilding from sturdier foundations is needed. Tell the fans that is what is happening and why. If you still want a sport to watch in five, ten years then this needs to be done now. People will be more understanding and supportive if kept in the loop. 

One big league will rule out all the 'big boys' and also a significant number in the level below

It won't just be Doyle Kurtz Sayfutdinov  Bewley Fricke. It will also be the likes of Becker Pickering Brennan Ellis and even Bloedorn etc

None of those will go with a UK slot ahead of Poland - I'd estimate ruling out 20-25 riders

So when it's said let's have 12-14 teams 2h 2a so the loss of doubling up is negated that won't happen

That 12-14 teams in reality will be 9-10 max with riders available even with those aging British non world riders as the new No1s and the current RS standard riders as heat leader

It would also need a sizeable number of NDL/MDL commuting to full time racing meaning the gulf from top to bottom is still as huge as today but at a much much lower standard

Charge £20 plus for that and it's a case of last one out please turn off the lights

[Aries]

25 minutes ago, dontforgetthefueltapsbruv said:

One big league will rule out all the 'big boys' and also a significant number in the level below

It won't just be Doyle Kurtz Sayfutdinov  Bewley Fricke. It will also be the likes of Becker Pickering Brennan Ellis and even Bloedorn etc

None of those will go with a UK slot ahead of Poland - I'd estimate ruling out 20-25 riders

So when it's said let's have 12-14 teams 2h 2a so the loss of doubling up is negated that won't happen

That 12-14 teams in reality will be 9-10 max with riders available even with those aging British non world riders as the new No1s and the current RS standard riders as heat leader

It would also need a sizeable number of NDL/MDL commuting to full time racing meaning the gulf from top to bottom is still as huge as today but at a much much lower standard

Charge £20 plus for that and it's a case of last one out please turn off the lights

Much better version of what I said the other day on this. It isn’t just a small handful of 8/9 point riders that would be missing, it’s a hell of a lot more than that. It’s completely unworkable!

[Ben91]

42 minutes ago, dontforgetthefueltapsbruv said:

One big league will rule out all the 'big boys' and also a significant number in the level below

It won't just be Doyle Kurtz Sayfutdinov  Bewley Fricke. It will also be the likes of Becker Pickering Brennan Ellis and even Bloedorn etc

None of those will go with a UK slot ahead of Poland - I'd estimate ruling out 20-25 riders

So when it's said let's have 12-14 teams 2h 2a so the loss of doubling up is negated that won't happen

That 12-14 teams in reality will be 9-10 max with riders available even with those aging British non world riders as the new No1s and the current RS standard riders as heat leader

It would also need a sizeable number of NDL/MDL commuting to full time racing meaning the gulf from top to bottom is still as huge as today but at a much much lower standard

Charge £20 plus for that and it's a case of last one out please turn off the lights

I think 2H 2A is overkill in a 14 team league. One round off league fixtures and then find other ways to fill the calendar for me. But not the extent of trying to fit in another 13 meetings at each track. Be it extra regionalised league meetings, a cup/trophy etc. 

We’ve been meandering towards the last one out turn off the lights scenario for decades, things have picked up pace now though. It needs radical change, not the lip service we get every winter. 

 

[1 valve]

10 minutes ago, Ben91 said:

I think 2H 2A is overkill in a 14 team league. One round off league fixtures and then find other ways to fill the calendar for me. But not the extent of trying to fit in another 13 meetings at each track. Be it extra regionalised league meetings, a cup/trophy etc. 

We’ve been meandering towards the last one out turn off the lights scenario for decades, things have picked up pace now though. It needs radical change, not the lip service we get every winter. 

 

14 teams without doubling up cannot operate in the uk unless you have two leagues. 
One league without doubling up cannot be more than 8 teams (max) and then if some additional foreign riders can be attracted to ride in the Uk - it’s not an opinion it’s just the sum of the math & available race nights. 

[RoundTheBoards]

45 minutes ago, dontforgetthefueltapsbruv said:

One big league will rule out all the 'big boys' and also a significant number in the level below

It won't just be Doyle Kurtz Sayfutdinov  Bewley Fricke. It will also be the likes of Becker Pickering Brennan Ellis and even Bloedorn etc

None of those will go with a UK slot ahead of Poland - I'd estimate ruling out 20-25 riders

So when it's said let's have 12-14 teams 2h 2a so the loss of doubling up is negated that won't happen

That 12-14 teams in reality will be 9-10 max with riders available even with those aging British non world riders as the new No1s and the current RS standard riders as heat leader

It would also need a sizeable number of NDL/MDL commuting to full time racing meaning the gulf from top to bottom is still as huge as today but at a much much lower standard

Charge £20 plus for that and it's a case of last one out please turn off the lights

Absolutely spot on.

I found the Speedway Star recent edition which claimed something like "70% of fans want one big league" to be totally irresponsible.  It seemed to be 70% of people responding to a dishonest question 

The question they were responding to was "Would you support one big league if it had 14 strong teams with good quality riders, and equally competitive teams?"

But get that thought out of your head.  A "yes" answer to that question is irrelevant.  That's not an option.

One big league, running on any racenight, would automatically rule out anyone who races in the Polish leagues.

Gone would be:    Max Fricke, Jack Holder, Brady Kurtz, Dan Bewley, Emil Sayfutdinov, Jaimon Lidsey, Josh Pickering, Ryan Douglas, Jason Doyle, Michael Jepsen-Jensen, Chris Holder, Tom Brennan, Luke Becker, Jan Kvech, Tobias Musielak, Nicolai Klindt, Matej Zagar, Keynan Rew, Ben Cook, Maciej Janowski, Rohan Tungate, Norick Blodorn, Francis Gusts.

So that's 23 riders gone from Britain.

So what will the Premiership bring to a new combined league?     JUST ADAM ELLIS !

Every other rider who ride in the Premiership in 2025 (apart from Adam Ellis) doubled up into the Championship.   We can't count them twice.

So, the 5 teams joining the "One Big League" (Belle Vue, King's Lynn, Ipswich, Leicester, Sheffield) are bringing Adam Ellis to the party, but they need 5 x 7 = 35 riders.

So these big 5 need to take 34 of the doubling up riders....  

The remaining 9 championship clubs need 9 x 7 = 63 riders.....   but 34 of them are not availsble because they can no longer double up.

So suddenly we need a further 34 riders.   Where are they coming from? 

We could look to the National League, but many of the NDL riders already double-up into the Championship, others are still only 15 years old, so even if we take every NDL rider right down to the lowest 3.00 newcomer, we still can't get close to filling 14 "One Big League" teams.

Then of course, with no one able to double up, will riders be happy to have their income reduced by so much?  Or will they quit the sport?

What happens when someone gets injured?  Where will replacement riders come from?

ONE BIG LEAGUE CANNOT POSSIBLY WORK.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[The Third Man]

And neither can a premier league with potentially four teams