What will 2026 UK speedway bring?

[Glen]

22 minutes ago, TTT said:

CHAMP Clubs are heavily reliant on the Best of British being the backbone of their 1-7's for a wage that suits all parties.

They'll be taken away from them as the PREM Teams will need replacements for GP & Ekstraliga Riders.

Riders will just sign for the PREM Teams for the bigger money contracts that they were already going to get at PREM level.

No Team Building Rules or Grading System can stop the inevitable as their simply isn't enough Heat Leaders to go round in a 14 Team League whether you run 5 Man Teams or 7 Man Teams.

Not even enough Riders on 6.00 - 6.99 GSA's for 1 Per a Team let alone No.1's on 8+ GSA's.

So are you saying those same riders who will fill the places of the absent GP and others won’t ride in the Championship as they do now? 

[TTT]

Just now, Glen said:

So are you saying those same riders who will fill the places of the absent GP and others won’t ride in the Championship as they do now? 

I'm saying the PREM Teams in 1 Big League would swoop all of the big hitting CHAMP Heat Leaders up and leave the current CHAMP Clubs fighting over scraps like Craig Cook and Troy Batchelor.

PREM Clubs have already got deals in place for the Best of British at PREM level on a higher wage than they curently earn at CHAMP level.

PREM Clubs will just honour those contracts and they'll be valid for 1 Big League instead of a PREM League.

PREM Clubs will be saving a fortune on GP & Ekstraliga Riders and that's the red flag for CHAMP Clubs.

[Glen]

1 hour ago, norbold said:

1964 all over again?

It worked then as the top riders didn’t have anywhere else to go and ride.

Some promoters didn’t like losing a rider to another club so as to even out teams.

As long as each club had a ‘top’ rider - the world class riders had diminished in numbers though as Craven Fundin Knutsson and Moore had gone. I think you have some similarities to what we may find now.

 

[Tim G]

11 minutes ago, TTT said:

Just propping this up again.

You can clearly see that the Numbers don't add up when it comes to Heat Leaders.

The only way you can ease the Heat Leader Rider shortage for 1 Year in 1 Big League is by running all fixtures on a MON & THU Night that'll see us keep Riders like Ryan Douglas, Niels-Kristian Iversen and co.

However running Fixtures on a MON & THU Night doesn't favour CHAMP Clubs when the vast majority of them like to run on FRI & SAT Night's.

Therefore the only real solution here......Is a sacrificial lamb being used to prop up the PREM and if nothing happens on the Northampton/Peterborough front then it'll be a CHAMP Club being forced up.

The Promoters and the BSPL simply don't have any other choice on the table due to Heat Leader Rider shortage.

But it’s blindingly obvious the premier league is unsustainable in it”s current guise so why force someone to go up if it can mean the end of a track.

You only have to look at Oxford and see the damaged done by being in the top flight and then you here about losses made at other tracks and it’s bloody scary.

British speedway needs to cut it’s cloth and run at a level that is sustainable and if it means the top boys don’t return and even some of the lesser riders go then so be it.

[Glen]

8 minutes ago, TTT said:

I'm saying the PREM Teams in 1 Big League would swoop all of the big hitting CHAMP Heat Leaders up and leave the current CHAMP Clubs fighting over scraps like Craig Cook and Troy Batchelor.

PREM Clubs have already got deals in place for the Best of British at PREM level on a higher wage than they curently earn at CHAMP level.

PREM Clubs will just honour those contracts and they'll be valid for 1 Big League instead of a PREM League.

PREM Clubs will be saving a fortune on GP & Ekstraliga Riders and that's the red flag for CHAMP Clubs.

I see you are now using the one big league argument and yes prem clubs would be saving lots of money - BUT they won’t be allowed to hoover up the best riders as I’m sure the bspl will introduce a rider control system that will try to even out team strengths. After all it’s been done before ! 
Drastic measures but necessary.

[TTT]

5 minutes ago, Tim G said:

But it’s blindingly obvious the premier league is unsustainable in it”s current guise so why force someone to go up if it can mean the end of a track.

You only have to look at Oxford and see the damaged done by being in the top flight and then you here about losses made at other tracks and it’s bloody scary.

British speedway needs to cut it’s cloth and run at a level that is sustainable and if it means the top boys don’t return and even some of the lesser riders go then so be it.

It's one big mess with no real positive outcome to be honest Tim.

It's basically a case of how many Clubs will get dealt a bad hand.

Two Tier Structure limits the damage to 1 Club.

[TTT]

8 minutes ago, Glen said:

I see you are now using the one big league argument and yes prem clubs would be saving lots of money - BUT they won’t be allowed to hoover up the best riders as I’m sure the bspl will introduce a rider control system that will try to even out team strengths. After all it’s been done before ! 
Drastic measures but necessary.

It doesn't matter though because mathematics state that Clubs will have to go without.

Literally no way that we can get a level playing field in 1 Big League unless all CHAMP Teams are prepared to run on a MON & THU Night which eases the pressure on Heat Leader Rider Availability.

Hence why this is all one big mess with no real positive outcome.

[Hamish McRaker]

33 minutes ago, Glen said:

It worked then as the top riders didn’t have anywhere else to go and ride.

Some promoters didn’t like losing a rider to another club so as to even out teams.

As long as each club had a ‘top’ rider - the world class riders had diminished in numbers though as Craven Fundin Knutsson and Moore had gone. I think you have some similarities to what we may find now.

 

History has a habit of coming around again

[Phannan]

1 hour ago, dontforgetthefueltapsbruv said:

Impossible to have promotion and relegation as NONE of the clubs would find it to their liking under anything close to the current set up

How could you run a top league with a points limit for example and have relegation - its completely counter intuitive 

No team would want to win the 2nd tier and be forced to change race night and double their rider costs

The scenario you set out could only work if there was sufficient financial incentive to want to achieve top flight status - and if that was the case we wouldn't be in this position anyway as there would be a queue asking to join!!

I think you’ll agree the current set up is all wrong and needs changing That’s why it’s in the state it’s in. The fact that everything has to be to the clubs own personal liking, what league they race in etc makes the sports professional status laughable. Where’s the ambition in this sport? Just surviving each year ? 5 teams in 1 division, 9 or 10 in the other ? Another year of same old same old ahead with promoters doing what’s best for them, never mind the sport’s future. They’re on borrowed time with that I’m alright jack attitude. 

[Colsimmo58]

This might not go down well with some people on here , but why dont the Championship Promoters get on with the job of building there teams to a 40 point limit, 2 home and away against each team in the Championship, Have the draw for the KO CUP,BSN Trophy Sections. name their Teams and leave the Prem to sort out their own bloody mess,that will take until Jan to resolve.

Glasgow and Poole will NOT be moving up,which would be financial disaster for both, and no other Championship side would survive.

[IainB]

56 minutes ago, TTT said:

I'm saying the PREM Teams in 1 Big League would swoop all of the big hitting CHAMP Heat Leaders up and leave the current CHAMP Clubs fighting over scraps like Craig Cook and Troy Batchelor.

PREM Clubs have already got deals in place for the Best of British at PREM level on a higher wage than they curently earn at CHAMP level.

PREM Clubs will just honour those contracts and they'll be valid for 1 Big League instead of a PREM League.

PREM Clubs will be saving a fortune on GP & Ekstraliga Riders and that's the red flag for CHAMP Clubs.

Without a TV deal the PL clubs are as hard up, if not more so, than the CL clubs, I doubt they'll be able to afford to out bid many of the financially viable CL clubs.

[TTT]

PREM needs changing, I 100% Agree.

I'd start with a One Rider Over 8.00 Per Team to ensure that everyone has a big hitter.

I'd then bring in another rule that states both Reserve positions have be filled by British Youngsters (No Older than 24) but a grading system will be in place to ensure that a particular Club or Clubs don't sign 2 Ringers like Leon Flint and Dan Thompson.

I'd have a Tier 1 List for Riders like Flint & D. Thompson, Then I'd have a Tier 2 List for Riders like Freddy Hodder & Vinnie Foord.....Clubs can only sign 1 Rider from each list to ensure that everyone has a strong No.6.

 

That'll lower the wage bill a bit and it'll invest more when it comes to British Youngsters.

[TTT]

7 minutes ago, Colsimmo58 said:

This might not go down well with some people on here , but why dont the Championship Promoters get on with the job of building there teams to a 40 point limit, 2 home and away against each team in the Championship, Have the draw for the KO CUP,BSN Trophy Sections. name their Teams and leave the Prem to sort out their own bloody mess,that will take until Jan to resolve.

Glasgow and Poole will NOT be moving up,which would be financial disaster for both, and no other Championship side would survive.

Because everything will be null and void if a change in League Structure happend.

So effictively they'll be wasting their time.

Literally no point in a CHAMP Club even announcing another signing as it means nothing until a 6 Team PREM is 100% official.

[norbold]

1 hour ago, Glen said:

It worked then as the top riders didn’t have anywhere else to go and ride.

Some promoters didn’t like losing a rider to another club so as to even out teams.

As long as each club had a ‘top’ rider - the world class riders had diminished in numbers though as Craven Fundin Knutsson and Moore had gone. I think you have some similarities to what we may find now.

 

Ove Fundin rode for Norwich in 1964 and Bjorn Knutson for West Ham. Also Barry Briggs (World Champion in 1964) rode for Swindon.

Edited 1 hour ago by norbold

[TTT]

14 minutes ago, IainB said:

Without a TV deal the PL clubs are as hard up, if not more so, than the CL clubs, I doubt they'll be able to afford to out bid many of the financially viable CL clubs.

TNT Deal wasn't great tbh, It was more about getting the Sport on TV.

Unfortunately TNT didn't really put any effort in but I'm not surprised considering they already got rid of it previously.

In TNT's eyes they just got lumbered with British Speedway when the EUROSPORT takeover happened.

[Steve Irving]

1 hour ago, Glen said:

I see you are now using the one big league argument and yes prem clubs would be saving lots of money - BUT they won’t be allowed to hoover up the best riders as I’m sure the bspl will introduce a rider control system that will try to even out team strengths. After all it’s been done before ! 
Drastic measures but necessary.

You bring in “rider control” and you then run the risk of pi$$ing off a large number of riders who are forced to either ride somewhere they don’t want to and for less money than they could have gotten elsewhere, or knock it on the head completely. The whole thing is a sh!tshow and there really are no easy and obvious solutions.

No wonder the AGM has been delayed.

[IainB]

6 minutes ago, TTT said:

TNT Deal wasn't great tbh, It was more about getting the Sport on TV.

Unfortunately TNT didn't really put any effort in but I'm not surprised considering they already got rid of it previously.

In TNT's eyes they just got lumbered with British Speedway when the EUROSPORT takeover happened.

The TV deals (especially the more recent ones) allowed the PL clubs to afford their number 1's and attract sponsorship, without it they're in the same boat as every other club. 

[TTT]

Why doesn't Harry Redknapp invest some finances into Poole in order to get them running at PREM level?

[LisaColette]

18 minutes ago, TTT said:

Why doesn't Harry Redknapp invest some finances into Poole in order to get them running at PREM level?

Because finances is only 1 out of 3 reasons why Poole won't move up. Other 2 are race nights and only having short term future at the stadium.

They said recently in the local press they wouldn't move up until they had long term future at the stadium. 

[TTT]

2 minutes ago, IainB said:

The TV deals (especially the more recent ones) allowed the PL clubs to afford their number 1's and attract sponsorship, without it they're in the same boat as every other club. 

I guarantee Ipswich will still have Doyle with or without a TV deal in a PREM league.

Everything is fine on the Sponsorship front, Without being bias towards Ipswich even JCB has already renewed with Leicester for 2026.