Ipswich Witches 2026

[IainB]

4 minutes ago, Aries said:

Doyle just got fed up of waiting. Nobody made him an offer. Similar to Ellis reading between the lines of what his father has posted although I’m sure he’ll Correct me if I’m wrong. 
 

We just know the club are running this season. That was confirmed at the AGM so all parties are either 100% sure the sale is going through and it’s just Red tape holding things up, or it’ll be run by whoever regardless. 

Surely if Doyley was that confident you were running he would have signed up?

[Aries]

24 minutes ago, IainB said:

Surely if Doyley was that confident you were running he would have signed up?

According to him in the Star, he just hadn’t received an offer and got fed up of waiting. Didn’t wanna ride for anyone else here so done deals in other Countries. Let’s not forget the confirmation that Ipswich were running didn’t come until early January after the delayed AGM. By then, Doyle, and others, already had their season’s planned out. Just one of them ain’t it 🤷🏼‍♂️

[Hamish McRaker]

9 hours ago, RoundTheBoards said:

I don't understand your problem.   Ipswich Speedway Promotions Ltd is the company that holds the promotion rights to Ipswich Witches.  Chris Louis is the sole shareholder.   

Chris Louis didn't want to continue, so his options were to pull out altogether (and have a near enough worthless company) or sell the company's main asset (the licence) to someone else.  He chose the latter, and agreed to sell the club.

Businesses change hands all the time.  I might win the Euromillions this week and offer Buster a million quid for King's Lynn.  I buy the club and its licence, and things carry on, just with a new owner.  

 

Of course businesses change hands, as an investor i know that.

So, are you saying that, if C.Louis had not found a suitable buyer or if any proposed transaction had not been completed before the start of the 2026 season, he would have continued to run Ipswich speedway in the Premier league? Really?

[Aries]

6 minutes ago, Hamish McRaker said:

Of course businesses change hands, as an investor i know that.

So, are you saying that, if C.Louis had not found a suitable buyer or if any proposed transaction had not been completed before the start of the 2026 season, he would have continued to run Ipswich speedway in the Premier league? Really?

We can only go by the facts that have been given to us. 

https://britishspeedway.co.uk/miscellaneous/british-speedway-agm-statement-3/

 

“Five teams have been confirmed to contest the 2026 season: Belle Vue, Ipswich, King’s Lynn, Leicester and Sheffield. Attempts are still being made to include a sixth team in the Premiership”.

 

[IainB]

18 minutes ago, Aries said:

According to him in the Star, he just hadn’t received an offer and got fed up of waiting. Didn’t wanna ride for anyone else here so done deals in other Countries. Let’s not forget the confirmation that Ipswich were running didn’t come until early January after the delayed AGM. By then, Doyle, and others, already had their season’s planned out. Just one of them ain’t it 🤷🏼‍♂️

I wouldn't pay too much attention to an "intention to run" or a "commitment to run", unless contracts have been signed between Ippo and BSPL I doubt there's anything legally binding and it's just words.

I suppose the only sanction Mr Louis would receive would be not getting his bond money back, if indeed that is still a thing?

Edited 3 hours ago by IainB

[Tapewrecker]

6 minutes ago, Aries said:

We can only go by the facts that have been given to us. 

https://britishspeedway.co.uk/miscellaneous/british-speedway-agm-statement-3/

 

“Five teams have been confirmed to contest the 2026 season: Belle Vue, Ipswich, King’s Lynn, Leicester and Sheffield. Attempts are still being made to include a sixth team in the Premiership”.

 

Personally I think we are being led up the garden path.

[Aries]

40 minutes ago, Witches1998 said:

Hi, not heard anything else about when the news should be released?

Having spoken personally with an ex Witch’ UK mechanic on Monday, he told me an announcement would be made in “a week and a half”. That puts it at the middle of next week. He could be out with that of course and it could come sooner we’ll Have to wait and see. 

[Aries]

1 minute ago, IainB said:

I wouldn't pay to an "intention to run" or a "commitment to run", unless contracts have been signed between Ippo and BSPL I doubt there's anything legally binding and it's just words.

I suppose the only sanction Mr Louis would receive would be not getting his bond money back, if indeed that is still a thing?

No idea, but that bond money was quite substantial wasn’t it? Anyway, the statement didn’t come with any caveats ie “confirmed to run on the basis that the club is successfully sold”, just that Ipswich were confirmed starters in 2026 so we have to take that at face value.

[IainB]

2 minutes ago, Aries said:

No idea, but that bond money was quite substantial wasn’t it? Anyway, the statement didn’t come with any caveats ie “confirmed to run on the basis that the club is successfully sold”, just that Ipswich were confirmed starters in 2026 so we have to take that at face value.

was the bond about £15k?

[M.D]

Just now, IainB said:

was the bond about £15k?

Various bonds but a lot more than that, some of them to be payed back to the club season upon season.

[IainB]

3 minutes ago, M.D said:

Various bonds but a lot more than that, some of them to be payed back to the club season upon season.

Come on, what are we talking then? Or are we going to have to guess? 😁

[dontforgetthefueltapsbruv]

7 minutes ago, IainB said:

was the bond about £15k?

 

5 minutes ago, M.D said:

Various bonds but a lot more than that, some of them to be payed back to the club season upon season.

 

1 minute ago, IainB said:

Come on, what are we talking then? Or are we going to have to guess? 😁

No one will believe the figures anyway

Unless it suits their agenda 

[Phannan]

33 minutes ago, Aries said:

According to him in the Star, he just hadn’t received an offer and got fed up of waiting. Didn’t wanna ride for anyone else here so done deals in other Countries. Let’s not forget the confirmation that Ipswich were running didn’t come until early January after the delayed AGM. By then, Doyle, and others, already had their season’s planned out. Just one of them ain’t it 🤷🏼‍♂️

If he didn’t want to ride for anyone else here , that means he’d have turned down a similar offer from belle Vue on the best racetrack in the world. Which he wouldn’t have ..

 

[Hamish McRaker]

8 minutes ago, Aries said:

We can only go by the facts that have been given to us. 

https://britishspeedway.co.uk/miscellaneous/british-speedway-agm-statement-3/

 

“Five teams have been confirmed to contest the 2026 season: Belle Vue, Ipswich, King’s Lynn, Leicester and Sheffield. Attempts are still being made to include a sixth team in the Premiership”.

 

So to repeat, this would seem to infer that C.Louis would have continued to operate Ipswich in the PL, in the event of a sale of his business not having been achieved and completed.

If that was not the case, surely the BSPL statement would have been misleading, unless C.Louis had given BSPL such a guarantee?

[dontforgetthefueltapsbruv]

1 minute ago, Hamish McRaker said:

So to repeat, this would seem to infer that C.Louis would have continued to operate Ipswich in the PL, in the event of a sale of his business not having been achieved and completed.

If that was not the case, surely the BSPL statement would have been misleading, unless C.Louis had given BSPL such a guarantee?

Why am I getting images of a courtroom in my head with Hamish festooned in wig and gown, pacing hands behind his back during a cross examination 

[mikebv]

4 minutes ago, IainB said:

Come on, what are we talking then? Or are we going to have to guess? 😁

I'll start....

I see your £15k and raise it by twenty pounds...

Could be a long thread this...

I seem to remember the bond has changed down the years with the last I heard it being £50k..

However, I also seem to remember it changing into assets also being part of the bond, rather than just cash, hence new promoters in particular were encouraged to make riders into their assets..

(Which also often meant more, unattached in the UK, overseas journeymen coming over who became as asset. Great for UK rider development!!)..

Obviously, there are no assets anymore, so if a track closes the BSP no longer inherits the riders and are, therefore, no longer able to either loan or sell them to other teams to help pay the debts of the closed track..

I can't believe the bond is £50k though anymore to be honest, given so few people seem interested in coming into the sport to promote...

£15,025, my final bid...

[KevtheRev]

Having lost Dan to Leicester, maybe they are trying to get Jason and/or Emil back.  

They would be mad not to try.

The team posted yesterday will be on a hiding to nothing. Crowds would drop significantly.

[mikebv]

2 minutes ago, KevtheRev said:

Having lost Dan to Leicester, maybe they are trying to get Jason and/or Emil back.  

They would be mad not to try.

The team posted yesterday will be on a hiding to nothing. Crowds would drop significantly.

Doyle would have to drop a league overseas to come back, and will have signed contracts...

And Sayfutdinov would need a new visa, (which is why he left wasnt it as it ran out?)...

A new promotion would struggle to be a sponsor too I think given the rules that need to be followed..

[Aries]

11 minutes ago, Phannan said:

If he didn’t want to ride for anyone else here , that means he’d have turned down a similar offer from belle Vue on the best racetrack in the world. Which he wouldn’t have ..

 

Up to you if you choose to believe him or not. I’m just quoting what the bloke said. 
 

I wouldn’t have thought an offer from Belle Vue would have been forthcoming anyway. They already had their top two. 

[Aries]

2 minutes ago, mikebv said:

Doyle would have to drop a league overseas to come back, and will have signed contracts...

And Sayfutdinov would need a new visa, (which is why he left wasnt it as it ran out?)...

A new promotion would struggle to be a sponsor too I think given the rules that need to be followed..

Yes his three year work visa expired and it was apparently very expensive to renew. He done the three years of his visa, won medals in both the Cup and Premiership, so things all came to a natural end.