British Speedway - 2012 Season Preview

With March rapidly approaching and thankfully a relatively quiet winter behind us Its time to start looking forward to the 2012 Speedway season.

As usual a few changes have been made to the SCB rulebook at the AGM. The main changes were; the one rider over 8pts rule has been removed, points limit upped to 41, EL best pairs shelved, Eastbourne and Kings Lynn will not compete in the KO Cup and Jon Cook promoted to BSPA Vice Chairman. The full British Speedway AGM Statement is available here

Perhaps more surprisingly there has also been some major changes to the SWC format. The hosts Sweden have been handed an automatic place into the final at Malilla. Meaning that only one team from the race off will go into the final. The automatic qualification to the final of the host nation allows the competition to expand to nine countries. Teams will now only include four riders instead of five and meetings will be cut from twenty five to twenty  heats. Full details regarding the changes and new format are available via the official FIM Speedway World Championships website 

So lets have a look at the teams the promoters have been busy building over the winter and in some cases are still busy building.

Belle Vue Aces 

Touted as potential champions during last years pre-season following the major winter signings of Chris Harris and Rory Schlein the Aces experienced a disappointing campaign. Harris in particular had a troubled year and Belle Vue owner David Gordon took a parting shot at Harris stating "He was never a part of our 2012 plans. He did not deliver what Belle Vue expected and required." Two positives for Belle Vue to take from the 2011 season were the performances of Rory Schlein and Craig Cook. Schlein has been signed on a full transfer following an agreement with the Coventry Bees. Craig Cook is yet to be re-signed but I would not be surprised to see him included as he put in some solid performances last season and is a quality up and coming young talent. The Aces have also retained the exciting Danish prospect Patrick Hougaard and made a surprise move for Australian veteran Adam Shields following Lakesides decision not to sign Adam for the 2012 season. At this point in time Belle Vue have two more slots to fill, with one of those likely to be filled by Kryzstof Kasprzak. I expect the Aces to make a fairly solid start to the season but the management usually fail to make the right changes at the right time therefore I can see them finishing no higher than ninth.     

Key Rider: Rory Schlein

Prediction: 9th

Birmingham Brummies

Birmingham will be hoping to build on their debut season in the Elite League which was plagued by inconsistency. The Brummies Elite League future was far from certain at the end of last season as Tony Mole put the Perry Bar outfit up for sale. Thankfully BCTG stepped in and purchased the club and ended any speculation that the Brummies would drop back down to the Premier League. Danish GP stalwart Bjarne Pedersen will take the number one race jacket signing from Eastbourne who he helped to the Elite League Grand Final last season. Back up to Bjarne comes in the form of skipper Danny King and Ben Barker. With three full time riders and two additional doubling up riders to partner Ben Barker and Josh Auty still to announce the Brummies are far from complete. A rider of "GP Experience" is to be announced on Thursday the 5th of January, expected by many to be Sebastian Ulamek. Key to the Brummies season will be the availability and fitness of Ben Barker who was one of the shining lights for them in 2011. Without knowing the 5 riders who will make up the remainder of the Brummies squad its hard to accurately predict how the Brummies will fair this season.  

Key Rider: Ben Barker

Prediction: 8th

Coventry Bees

Its all change at Coventry with Mick Horton taking the reigns from Avtar Sandhu the agreement involves Horton initially leasing the club with the option to purchase at the end of the 2012 season. Alun Rossiter has also left the management team returning to manage the Swindon Robins. Only Edward Kennett and Kenni Larsen have been retained from the 2011 team with Chris Harris and Scott Nicholls both returning to Brandon and are expected to put their differences aside and form a powerful spearhead, the pair are pivotal to a successful campaign for the Bees. The spotlight will also be on Edward Kennett who returns from his six month ban imposed by the SCB following the irregularities found within his silencer on Saturday the 6th of August following a 15pt maximum at Lakeside. The lower order is made up of two pairs of doubling up riders with Aaron Summers and Leigh Lanham sharing a spot initially in the main body of the team and Adam Roynon and Jason Bunyan sharing a reserve berth. Henning Bager fills the remaining spot at reserve, the experienced Dane could prove to be a trump card at reserve. The Bees lower order does look a little lightweight, but the ability of the top four should be sufficient to lead them to a playoff place.   

Key Rider: Scott Nicholls
Prediction: 3rd

Eastbourne Eagles

Off the back of a successful 2011 the Eagles promotion are still yet to make any announcements regarding the team lineup. However it appears likely to be the same lineup as last year apart from Bjarne Pedersen leaving to go to the Birmingham Brummies. Leaving 4.67 for his replacement. Taking over the number one race jacket from Bjarne Pedersen is likely to be Joonas Kylmakorpi. Joonas is an incredibly talented speedway rider and the current FIM Longtrack World Champion however I am not convinced he can consistently score 8-12 points per meeting and beat opposition number ones on a regular basis. If he can step up and prove me wrong there is no reason the Eagles cannot have another strong season. However the potential of having an inconsistent number one unfortunately makes Eastbourne my favourites for the wooden spoon.

Key Rider: Joonas Kylmakorpi
Prediction: 10th

 King's Lynn Stars

Following stepping up from the Premier League the Kings Lynn Stars had an impressive 2011 season finishing third and will be hoping they have put together a squad capable of winning the Elite League Grand Final in October. Of the 2011 squad Neils Kristian Iversen, Mads Korneliussen, David Howe, Kozza Smith and Filip Sitera have been retained with Iversen taking the number one race jacket from Kenneth Bjerre who has returned to parent club Peterborough. Current World Under 21 champion Maciej Janowski joins on loan from Swindon and the Stars will no doubt have high hopes that Janowski can substantially increase upon his 6.06 average. The Stars also won the race to sign the highly rated Kevin Wolbert who joins initially on his converted PL Average 5.17. This meaning the Stars plans are slightly complex as Kevin's average will change after just two away meetings due to his rolling average from 2011, which is currently 4.28. Initially the four riders doubling up will be David Howe and Kozza Smith at number 6 and Filip Sitera and Michael Palm Toft at number 7. Once Kevin's average is revised after two away meetings David Howe will be promoted into the main body of the team and a new doubling up partner will be signed. Kevin Wolbert will ride at number six, Kozza Smith and Dakota North will double up as the Stars Number seven with Filip Sitera dropping down to become the clubs number eight. The final piece of the puzzle is Daniel Nermark who re-joins the Stars after spending the 2011 season with the Brummies. I have no doubts that Janowski and Wolbert can easily increase upon their initial averages, but I am unsure about the top three and don't think they can consistently score the required amount of points to get Kings Lynn into the playoffs.        

Key Rider: Maciej Janowski
Prediction: 6th

 Lakeside Hammers

The Hammers have put together one of the strongest looking teams on paper. Signing the Super Swede Peter Karlsson and former Poole captain Davey Watt for the 2012 campaign who alongside Lee Richardson will form a powerful heat leader trio. 2011 regulars Stuart Robson and Kauko Nieminen will share a doubling up role with 2011 rider of the year Robert Mear and Kim Nilsson also being retained. The final reserve berth in the team will be shared by Justin Sedgmen and Ritchie Worrall. The Arena Essex raceway is one of the most renowned circuits for providing a distinct advantage to the Hammers due to its unique shape and size. The mixture of experience and youth within the team looks to me like a winning formula and I expect the Lakeside Hammers to be at the top of the tree come October.     

Key Rider: Peter Karlsson
Prediction: 1st

 Peterborough Panthers

After the will they be in, wont they be in debacle last winter both Panthers and Bees fans were glad this years AGM was relatively uneventful. The Showground is going to be a safer place for opposition sides this year with Nicki Pedersen not being re-signed for the 2012 campaign. Even without Pedersen the Panthers have a strong Danish line up and have signed a total of five Danes and have also signed former Danish Team Manager Jan Staechmann in the role of co-boss. The senior pocket rocket Kenneth Bjerre returns after a season on loan at Kings Lynn, club asset Jesper B Monberg returns for another stint with the Panthers, Lasse Bjerre and Rene Bach will share a doubling up role starting in the main body of the team. The final Dane is nineteen year old starlet Michael Jepsen Jensen who is expected to be one of the leagues strongest reserves and will more than likely be taking seven rides on a regular basis. Linus Sundstrom and Olly Allen are the Panthers second and third heat leaders and will be looking to provide solid backup to Kenneth Bjerre. The final reserve berth will be shared by Richard Lawson and Kyle Newman. The Panthers lineup looks strong on paper however I think they will struggle on the road and fall just short of the playoffs.

Key Rider: Michael Jepsen Jensen
Prediction: 5th

 Poole Pirates

The reigning Elite League and KO Cup Champions have had to make some major team changes to accommodate both Chris Holder and Darcy Ward in their 2012 line up. No doubt Holder and Ward will often bag 25-30 points per meeting but Matt Ford and Neil Middleditch had a tough task on their hands to build a solid middle and lower order to ensure the Pirates are not too top heavy and have the capabilities to retain the Elite League title. Dennis Andersson has been retained and will be key to the success of the team and will need to provide useful contributions on a regular basis to backup the Turbo Twins. Sam Masters has been signed in a doubling up role with his partner yet to be confirmed and Ricky Kling has also been signed and will slot into a reserve berth. This currently leaves three or four riders left to sign (depending on if a second doubling up pair of riders is used.) Matt Ford usually pulls a rabbit out of the hat and I expect this season to be no different, his network of contacts and ability to obtain top quality riders on bargain averages is the reason Poole have achieved so much over the past twelve years. Despite many criticising the move to retain both Holder and Ward which makes them the most top heavy side in the Elite League I still think Poole will make the playoffs.
Key Rider: Dennis Andersson

Prediction: 4th

 Swindon Robins

The absence of Leigh Adams was all too clear last season at Blunsdon who experienced their worst ever Elite League season. Thankfully for Robins fans 2012 sees the return of Rosco and he has helped put together a balanced looking side. Troy Batchelor, Hans Andersen and Simon Stead create a formidable heat leader trio for the Robins. Nick Morris and Peter Kildemand follow Rossiter from Coventry to Swindon, both showed they had the ability to mix it with the best in the Elite League and Peter Kildemand will be a trump card at reserve. The final two slots are  both filled by doubling up riders in the form of Jason Doyle partnering Sebastian Alden and Robin Aspegren partnering Kenny Ingalls. Hans Andersen has much to prove after an injury plagued couple of years, if he can return to form then he will be the catalyst to a successful season for the Robins. I expect Swindon to be challenging for the title next year and believe they will reach the playoff final.    

Key Rider: Hans Andersen
Prediction: 2nd

 Wolverhampton Wolves

2011 was a year to forget for the Wolves, many thought they would still make the playoffs but unfortunately a weak reserve pairing ensured the Wolves only finished eighth. So you would think building from the bottom up would be the priority of the Wolves promotion team for the 2012 season? It appears not as Wolves put together the second most top heavy side with Freddie Lindgren and Tai Woffinden both retained. Support to Lindgren and Woffinden will come in the form of Nicolai Klindt who returns to his parent club from Swindon and Ty Proctor and both have the capabilities to improve upon their current averages. Then comes the tail, Polish youngster Lukasz Sowka will start in the main body of the team after impressing Chris Van Straatan and Peter Adams at the Banks Olympique event last season. The young Swede Pontus Aspgren will take a reserve berth and comes recommended by Peter Karlsson. The final reserve berth will be filled by the doubling up partnership of Ricky Wells and Thomas Jorgensen. Wells showed some good form towards the end of the 2011 campaign and Wolves will be hoping he continues where he left off after successfully guesting for Poole in the EL Grand Final scoring 7+2 from six rides over the two legs. Following a turbulent time within his life Tai Woffinden stood up and increased his average by 1.07 during an injury hit campaign, his form will be key to the Wolves season. But the tail just looks too long for me and I think the Wolves will struggle to finish any higher than seventh this season. 

Key Rider: Tai Woffinden
Prediction: 7th


This years British Final will take place at Monmore Green for the third year running. Scott Nicholls took the crown in 2011 in the third re-run of an action packed British Final and will be looking to claim his seventh British Title this year.    
Predicted British Final Result - 1st - Chris Harris, 2nd - Tai Woffinden, 3rd - Scott Nicholls, 4th - Edward Kennett

Who will triumph at Monmore Green this season to become British Champion and claim a wildcard spot at Cardiff?

So what are your thoughts ... Are you happy with your teams winter signings? Who do you think will experience the joy of lifting the Elite League trophy come October? All I know is I can't wait for the first set of tapes to rise and the smell of methanol to return to my nostrils, roll on March.