TALK IN REPORT First on the menu was the talk on PIOTR PAWLICKI and the pressures he was under being under 21 and so important to his club Leszno and the country as he chases the World U21 title. It was made clear that had he been 22 then its highly unlikely they would have had these problems and when Pete Adams asked the floor would they like to see him back, virtually every hands was raised in the air. As Piotr is still only 19, his birthday is in November, it would most likely rule him out of future team plans until 2016 but with his exciting riding style, fast gating and breath taking passes it would be a suprise if its the last we saw of him. On the issue of TAI WOFFINDEN there was a few points made through the night and PA revealed that in November last year he met up with Tai who was appearing at a show at the NEC. Tai was going through what he had planned for the defence of his title but PA stepped in and reminded him that he would only stay involved if Tai worked with him and that meant riding for Wolverhampton. Tai was reluctant to sign not just for the club but for British Speedway as the increase of meetings to 36 meetings was going to be too much and it took a bit of persuading to get the World Champion to agree to ride for the club in 2014. Nobody including Tai himself could pin point why he was struggling so much in Britain after scoring well in Poland and then going to Sweden and again scoring big points. When Tai returns from Poland, he comes in to Stanstead airport in the morning and heads up to Pete Adams house where he will have something to eat before getting a bit of sleep. PA did say though that as Jacob Thorssell was also there, he would often get woken up by the young Swede wanting to play in the afternoon which put everyone with the view of a young kid wanting his mate to go skateboarding etc as he was bored. On the issue of 2015, it is unclear what Tai will decide but with Eastbourne now closed and in a meeting last week, the EL promoters agreed with a vote of 7-2 to stick with the two home - two away meetings next season meaning 28 league matches ...... will that be acceptable for Tai who will be riding in Poland and Sweden again next season as well as the GPs and possibly the SEC too ? FREDRIK LINDGREN was mentioned and it was said that Freddie would rather have more meetings here than less as he would not feel it worth while riding here if he didnt have enough income to support living accomodation, mechanic, bikes etc needed for a full season. So maybe he could be back but with that there are also serious doubts about him returning as he is likely to be a top 8 finisher in the GP series meaning he will again be in the circus tour of 2015 that starts in New Zealand and finishes in Australia in late October. Also a few years ago, Sweden completely changed the rules on when riders are available to ride here. Riders like Freddie would ride on just Tuesdays in Sweden but they can now also ride on Thursdays in the lower leagues and Sweden now insist riders ride there rather than in Britain if there is any clashes of dates which there will be. CVS said that they had hoped to bring in OLIVER BERNTZON when they made the team changes but injuries and availability meant he couldnt come at that time and with PK already sorted, they had to look elsewhere and it just so happened that there was a rider on a 4+ average that was available That was LASSE BJERRE and after a slow start, Lasse shone in the 4TT at Monmore and from then on was a revelation for the club home and away and has indicated that he wants to return to Wolves next season and CVS expressed his admiration for LB who was a pleasure to work with on and off the track and will be considered for next season. There is no deal with OLIVER BERNTZON for next season but they have spoken and he is very keen to ride for Wolves next season and will be meeting up with PA in Stockholm at the next GP on Saturday. However there has to be a bit of concern if OB is signed up to a Thursday night club in Sweden as it would mean a clash when appearing at some away meetings. JASON GARRITY is also in mind for next season as he has indicated to CVS that he loves it at Wolves and loves riding the Monmore Green track. CVS said that a few years ago, he would not have touched Garrity with a barge pole but of late he has matured and they will be talking with him in the close season and Len Silver at Rye House but that does not mean he will be signing. JACOB THORSSELL is of course the first rider likely to be put on the team sheet in 2015 and the club and fans have seen a great improvement in JT as he has progressed from a novice that struggled to stay on the bike to a rider that is hitting big scores home and away. As for RICKY WELLS and TY PROCTOR there may well be a problem for both next season in returning as both require work permits to race here and there is a call that doubling up riders should be British riders or at least European under the EU banner. So both may well be likely to be just Premier League next season. PETER KARLSSON - They admitted that PK was pretty crap in his return and it was not the PK of old that came into the team. As for 2015 it depends on the format or strength of the teams as to how he would fit in the team but he remains a possibility but it is felt Thorssell, Bjerre, Berntzon etc are the priority riders in team building for next season along with a #1 that can dominate heat one and the final heats. RACE FORMAT - FAST TRACK RIDERS Overall everyone has been pleased with the way the 2014 season has gone but they admit it needs a bit of fine tuning with the heat format changed a bit and could even see a return to just one reserve race but CVS stated how having the top riders ride each other more was good and thats how it should be. However as a few top riders like Tai have now got lower averages while some second strings have inflated averages, they see Grading riders as the way forward next season. The way Kyle Newman, Jason Garrity, Steve Worrall etc have progressed this year has been great and they will next season hopefully be moved up to second string status along with riders that missed out this season like Ashley Birks, Josh Auty etc. CVS and PA admitted they didnt realise how much emphasis the fast track riders would have on the match results and pointed out that the top five fast track riders were at the five top clubs which isnt just a coincidence. Lewis Kerr at Kings Lynn has finished the season as the third highest averaging rider in the EL of 2014 but has hardly been tested after riding mainly against felloiw reserves. Next season there could be a revert to just one reserve race but they will still mainly be matched to second strings in other races while the heat leaders face each other still. The overall plan is to hope each EL team features one British rider in the team and two fast traqck riders and then in 2016 that increased to two Brits meaning just three foreigners in each team. CVS shared my view that the Premier League are wrong in not supporting the fast track plan and is angry that riders like Joe Jacobs can lose a team place in his own country to a German that has failed to do anything in the past to show he is worthy of riding here in the PL. BRITAIN NO LONGER THE PLACE TO BE CVS said that times have changed over the years as Sweden and Poland only tracked their own riders for years which saw them gain international status with the likes of Tomasz Gollob, Tony Rickardsson, Per Jonsson, Jarek Hampel etc who have all ridden over here. Now both Sweden and Poland are filled with foreign riders while still having riders progress like Pawlicki, Zmarzlik, Dudek etc at reserve and getting well known on the international scene through the GPs, WTC and U21s. These countries are now demanding more and more that riders ride when they want and too many riders have missed meetings here to ride or even practice over there and they no longer look at Britain as a power in the sport it once was, so the fast track riders are looked at as a way of Britain building for the future. CVS said he cant see any way that job sharing for the #1 riders would work as they would be looking at the same fixtures they couldnt ride in RACE JACKETS - These were phased out due to riders not wanting them and that is with regret. Now the FIM have issued a ruling that Nylon can no longer be used in the kevlars and that is why Jacob had the dull colour in his race suit which was done to FIM standard. Hopefully this will be looked at again as they dont want 14 dull coloured riders appearing in a night meeting when they could be bright orange or post box red. SILENCERS - A new silencer is being looked at by the FIM and Britain are hoping that they stick with the present one for another year while tests are done on the new one. In the past Britain was forced to start the season with the new silencers which was a concern for many riders like Gollob who went on strike. By the time the Swedish and Polish leagues had started, the FIM backed down and Britain were already a month into the season when riders were allowed to revert to the old ones. TACTICAL RULE - There is a feeling that the BSPA want to change this ruling but its unsure if they revert back to the old Tac Sub ride as in the old days or the 15 meter handicap or something different. However SKY are the main reason this is in place and in the end they will again have a big say on how this goes forward. The problem with the old tac sub rule is that with heat leaders now up against each other more often, the tac sub would be used in the races featuring the second strings and reserves like in the past when heat 8 would often see the opposing #1 bought in for an easy race win. It is felt that the Grading system will be reintroduced next season which would mean Tai Woffinden would be a top grade rider along with the likes of Iversen, Ward, Zagar and Holder despite having a much lower average ..... but you have to ask how many of those top grade riders will be over here next season for various reasons ? CRADLEY HEATH - It would be highly unlikely that they will be in the Elite League next season but along with Birmingham could well be in the Premier League and they are almost certain to still be riding at Monmore Green but it may be a different race night if they move up. GARDENING - CVS did admit it was a joke that Tai Woffinden was allowed to use gardening tools in the British Final and that was the main topic of conversation a week later at a BSPA meeting and riders will not be allowed to do this in the future. It was however pointed out that at the British Final there were three referees doing that meeting and not one of them attempted to stop it or say anything.
Posted on: Tue, 23 Sep 2014 20:45:37 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015