Category: Bears News

Earlier this week, Ryan Nassau sat down with Bears co-promoter Jitendra Duffill for a Q&A on the current state of the Bears during the COVID pandemic and thoughts for next season.

See the full interview on Youtube:

SPEEDWAY fans across the UK are urged to step forward and support the British Final this weekend – from their own home!
Following the latest blow to hopes of fans returning to sport in October, the showpiece event will now go ahead behind closed doors.
Fans can enjoy the action thanks to a top quality live stream courtesy of Sport Central who have vast experience in streaming ice hockey at the top level. Commentary will be provided by the experienced Dave Rowe and Ipswich favourite Cameron Heeps.
The stream is available for £12.95 and hopes are high of a significant take-up from supporters across the globe.
In addition, a limited edition official programme – which is sure to be a collector’s item – with 56-pages and in-depth human interest interviews, statistics, history and a racecard is also on sale for fans to order and have delivered to their home in time for the event.
British Speedway Chairman Rob Godfrey said: “It’s more vital than ever for fans to support this event without actually being there.
“We have worked tirelessly to put this event on, in particularly Chris Louis at Ipswich, and it’s been hit by one setback after another.
“We are determined to stage the British Final and we need to see a good response to live stream orders as well as the programme. This is the next best thing to being there!
“Right now we feel drained, but we will regroup and look forward to Saturday with great excitement and enthusiasm. Ipswich Speedway have been magnificent throughout all of this and it’s a bold decision to go behind closed doors but let’s do it!”
LIVE STREAM available here: www.sportcentral.tv (£12.95)
PROGRAMME available here: www.curtis-sport.com/online-store/2020-British-Final-p235363229 (£5)

With a handful of speedway meetings scheduled to take place around the country there is maybe the hope that we are starting to come out the other side of the dark cloud that has been 2020.
With potential action to look forward to and thanks to social media, there has been an abundance of action to look back upon too.

On the Speedway Scrapbook page on Facebook, a couple of programme scans from 1970 “Champion of Champions” meeting in Christchurch New Zealand. Basically a Grand Prix lineup around 25 years before the Grand Prix was a thing, you only need to look at the names on show to know this was a special night of action!

Ove Fundin, Ronnie Moore, Ivan Mauger, and Barry Briggs had 13 World Championships between them by the time this meeting took place, and to put that into perspective I don’t believe there are any of the current crop of Grand Prix riders with that many titles between them! Quite the line up indeed!

Over on Twitter and the Sport and Betting History page shared this gem of a picture from Coventry. A packed house at Brandon is a memory for some but a recent bid for the stadium ensures the fight goes on to bring speedway back to Coventry again. Maybe just maybe nights like this can become the norm again.

It would be nice to have a famous name like the Bees back on track and back in action again, and as the caption says it wasn’t that long ago, yet at the same time it was entirely too long ago.

From looking at the past to looking at the present now and the future stars of Team GB on their recent Under 21 World Team Cup meeting. I’m sure you’ll all agree that the boys look extremely well turned out and that their third place finish was a decent result.

However, is it just me or is Drew Kemp channeling his inner Liam Gallagher?
When I asked him, he said maybe….

If you wish to agree, or disagree with me, you have spotted something on social media you feel is worth a mention here, or you simply want to chew the fat over all things speedway , then get in touch either via email jbspeedwaymedia@hotmail.com, via the JB Speedway Media Facebook page or you can even tweet me @Mythman666.

Until next time, and there will be a next time.
JB

Redcar Speedway are delighted to announce club stalwart Barry Simpson as the first ever inductee into our ‘Speedway on Teesside Roll of Honour’.

Barry has made an outstanding contribution to the Redcar club, and has become one of the pillars that it is built on. 

During Redcar’s history, he has acted as start marshal for fifteen consecutive seasons since the day we opened, making him our longest serving track staff member at the Media Prima Arena.  Such is his standing within speedway, he was even selected to be start marshal at the British Grand Prix in Cardiff twice! 

Barry has helped the Bears by being the main sponsor with his Simpson Racing Fuels and Lubricants for two years, as well as sponsoring his fuels to many Bears riders over the seasons.  He has also played a large part in our Junior Programme, helping individual riders as well as the Cubs with his fuels and oils and many other items.
Barry is widely respected within UK speedway, and is well known throughout Europe with his company, Simpson Racing Lubricants. He has made a huge impact both on and off the track whilst associated with the Redcar club, and previously at the old Cleveland Park, as well as local grass track events both as a rider and a volunteer.

Redcar Speedway would like to take this opportunity to thank him for his support over the many years and honour him in this small way.

With very little speedway action to look forward to in 2020, many clubs have been forced to look back the way and quite often we see the themes of #WheelieWednesday and #ThrobackThursday making regular appearances.

Well our friends at Sheffield are no exceptions to this giving us this epic throwback from around 20 years ago with a young Simon Stead in what has to be one of his earlier outings for the Tigers. Of course he would go on to have a very successful career beyond this with league medals at all levels of the sport as well as individual honours along the way.

Who would have thought that this fresh faced young lad would not only age in reverse, but would also go on to be in charge of Team GB?

Elsewhere on Twitter, Spotted at Speedway posted this incredible picture of a crash at what looks like a Polish league meeting.

A scene that wouldn’t have looked out of place in any action movie or episode of the A Team, the photographer was in the right place at the right time to capture this incredible shot.

Hopefully all the riders involved were able to escape relatively unscathed amidst the carnage. Safe to say though, there would be a few hefty repair bills to sort the bikes out once the dust had settled here.

Over to Facebook now and the countdown to the Speedway Grand Prix is officially on with the revised series getting underway this coming weekend.

Will Bartosz Zmarzlik reign supreme once more?

Will Leon Madsen go one better in 2020?

Or will we see a surprise winner in a year already full of them?

If you wish to agree, or disagree with me, you have spotted something on social media you feel is worth a mention here, or you simply want to chew the fat over all things speedway , then get in touch either via email jbspeedwaymedia@hotmail.com, via the JB Speedway Media Facebook page or you can even tweet me @Mythman666.

Until next time, and there will be a next time.

JB

In an interview with Ryan Nassau, conducted before the 2020 season was curtailed, Charles Wright gives us his thoughts on 2019 and the Bears.

Q: When the 2020 season gets underway you will be lining up for your local team the Belle Vue ‘Bikeright Aces’ alongside the Agila Bears, how do you believe that cutting down on the travelling time between tracks will help you take your career to the next level?

A: Obviously it’s massively important for myself, the less travelling I do means I can get more sleep which in turn will give me more energy. Over the course of a season having as much energy as possible is huge as it gives me the opportunity to perform at my best.

Q: Your 2019 season was extremely impressive, Becoming number 1 with your Premiership side, helping the Bears win their first ever silverware, becoming the British champion and riding in front of 50,000 fans at the Cardiff SGP. At Cardiff you gained 5 points from your 5 rides, were you happy with your points total or did you feel you could’ve gained a semi-final spot by picking up a win in one of your last two rides?

A: Obviously gaining 5 points against the top riders in the world was a great effort but the way it was going at the start of the meeting there was no reason why I couldn’t make the semi final. It doesn’t bother me who I’m up against, I just ride my own race. I didn’t let the occasion get the better of me as I just treat it as another meeting. I am proud of scoring 5 points but it was a shame not to get to the semi-finals. Unfortunately, my gating let me down towards the end of the meeting, if you don’t gate against these boys you’ve had it!

Q: As we have already discussed the 2019 season was a landmark one for you in your career but what was THE highlight and why? 

A: Obviously winning the British final has to be the highlight but that got me to Cardiff racing my heroes in front of 50,000 people. Riding at Cardiff was a dream come true and nobody can ever take that away from me.

Q: As all Bears fans know you love riding the boards and flying around the outside of your opponents, how did you develop this fearless style?

A:  I’ve always been one to give 100% to the finish line and I never quit. Riding the boards came naturally to me, I have quite an aggressive style and it’s a thrill flying around the outside of someone. I love sticking it in the dirt as I’m confident that I’m going to come out the other side in a better position. Having a lot of confidence and natural fitness helps, some riders struggle with confidence and earlier in my career I also struggled for confidence but now I have it in abundance. 

Q: At the end of the 2017 season your average was a solid 7.47 and at the end of last season you averaged a massive 9.59, how have you managed to increase your average by more than 2 points and in your three stints as a bear what do you regard as your best performance and why?

A:  I was always a 2nd or 3rd heat leader but now I am an out and out number 1. As I’ve already mentioned it’s all about confidence, once you start beating the big names in the big heats your confidence builds. Last year was not just a great one for myself it was a fantastic one for Redcar Speedway, it was a real change and a real buzz around the club. Keeping 5 riders from last season is fantastic, I know everyone and I get on with everyone and that is vital. I’m just desperate to get started and hopefully we can get going soon. My highlight for the Bears has to be winning the cup at Newcastle. 

Q: After a long but successful season the Bears finally picked up their first piece of major silverware with a KO cup victory over the Newcastle Diamonds, just how special was it for the Bears to have so many fans in attendance making it like a home meeting?

A: I think we had a bigger crowd than Newcastle, we swamped their stadium and that was massive. When the fans are behind you it gives you that extra 10% and it made a great night even more special. 

Q: When the Diamonds levelled it up on aggregate did you have any worries?

A: Yeah, there’s always that worry but the key was Jordan (Stewart) winning that heat 14 which took the pressure slightly off me and Erik (Riss) but we still had to split the Diamonds. Everyone contributed but Jordan’s heat 14 win just released the pressure from everyone’s shoulders

Q: You and Jordan are very close, do you try to guide him and help him improve as a speedway rider?

A: Me and Jordan are really close and he’s my apprentice. He reminds me a lot of myself at his age but it’s just about building that confidence. I try to guide him and get it into his head that he can’t turn up to tracks with the mindset that he doesn’t like the track because if you think like that you aren’t going to perform on the night. I told him before that heat 14 he needed to hit that first corner in the lead and twist that throttle a little more. He came in after that heat and said “it’s quite easy this isn’t it”. We went to Berwick and he got 3 last places and he said “I’ve got gate 1 next and it’s done nothing”. I had a bit of a go at him and I told him if you want to get to that corner first you will, anyway, he made the gate, cleared off and won. At a younger age sometimes you don’t have the confidence but that’s where I am trying to help him. Speedway is partly a mental game and if he has the belief in himself he can really push on and go to the next level. 

Q: As we’ve already touched upon you’ve had 3 stints with the Bears spanning 4 seasons so far, what is it about this great club that keeps bringing you back you Teesside?

A:  Redcar is like a family club to me. Ben, Jade and Jamie (Duffill, Mudgway and Swales) are fantastic to work with. When you turn up to the stadium everything is always immaculate. The way I’m treated is fantastic and I just cannot see myself riding anywhere else. I’m good friends with Ben and we speak regularly. The fans are great, they support you no matter whether you come first or last and Redcar feels like home to me. I just don’t want to ride anywhere else. 

While the world continues to go into meltdown ahead of potential spikes in Covid-19, the world of speedway has continued to deliver on the various social media platforms.

Over on Twitter there has been no shortage of absolute gems, and this old photo from the Costa Mesa track in California is no exception.

When you think of the rich history of American Speedway in its golden era, Costa Mesa is likely where a lot of future legends would cut their teeth as it were. Riders like Greg Hancock, Billy Hamill, Rick Miller, Bruce Penhall, Dennis Sigalos and many others will have been in action at the famous venue over the years.

Judging by this photo there was a capacity crowd in attendance to enjoy the action.

Elsewhere on Twitter there seemed to be a little animosity between Stal Gorzow team mates Anders Thomsen and Krysztof Kasprzak in their recent win over Lublin. 

It’s either that or Thomsen was telling KK that he was number one!

It wasn’t all bad for Gorzow though, as that win took them out of the relegation zone in the Ekstraliga as they were inspired by a flawless 18 point maximum by World Champion Bartosz Zmarzlik.

This superb photo captures him in full flight and on the sort of form that his Grand Prix rivals should be extremely worried about.

If you wish to agree, or disagree with me, you have spotted something on social media you feel is worth a mention here, or you simply want to chew the fat over all things speedway , then get in touch either via email jbspeedwaymedia@hotmail.com, via the JB Speedway Media Facebook page or you can even tweet me @Mythman666.

Until next time, and there will be a next time.

JB

The Media Prima Arena was graced with the presence of a Speedway legend today.
3 times World Champion Jason Crump was on hand to give tuition to rising stars Kyle Bickley and Drew Kemp, who both benefited from his expertise on a one to one basis.
The future is certainly looking bright with GB Academy as part of GB Speedway Team being so proactive in giving it’s developing talent track time with such a distinguished rider.
Redcar Speedway would like to thank BBC Look North, who took the time to film and interview at today’s practice. We expect the footage to air tomorrow night.
Jason will be giving more tuition tomorrow behind closed doors, but we will have photos for you all courtesy of Colin Poole Photography.

Earlier today Redcar Speedway were informed that professional league speedway in the UK had been cancelled for 2020 as a result of Coronavirus. This no doubt comes as a huge disappointment to most of our supporters and sponsors, but is likely to be expected following the governments announcement last week that supporters would not be allowed to attend professional sporting events until October at the earliest. Speedway in the UK cannot survive without gate revenue from its fans.

Redcar Speedway has faced its own challenges as a consequence of the Coronavirus pandemic, as  promoter Jitendra Duffill explains; “Firstly I’d like to thank our supporters, staff, riders and sponsors who have been supportive and understanding of our situation over the last few months. To be honest, committing to professional league speedway this year was going to be a huge challenge for us anyway. We have had major concerns about the likelihood of reduced crowd numbers resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic. There was a worry that the consequences of that would have put our club in financial difficulty and the future of the club in jeopardy. We also lost the services of some key members of staff. There are some upsetting things I cannot say at this time, but one major blow for us is that Terry Chrabaszcz, our main track curator, has had to resign from his position at the club as he has now found full time employment. To say we are gutted would be an understatement, but we fully understand and appreciate his reasons and he will be very difficult to replace. Terry has been a massive asset to Redcar Speedway for the last 3 years and he has done a phenomenal job in his time with us. I know that Terry is as disappointed as we are to be leaving, but the loss of his services are another unfortunate consequence of Covid-19. I’d like to wish him well and can’t thank him enough for his efforts.”

“We made a press release a few weeks ago stating that all of our club’s partner sponsors had already committed to backing the club in 2021. This was a major boost for us and we are extremely fortunate and thankful to have that support. Following our last press release, we also had over half of our season ticket holders contact us confirming that they would like to roll their tickets over to 2021. I really can’t stress just how massive that is to us and we are so grateful! Because of this support, we have no concerns about Redcar Speedway coming to the tapes in 2021 and we are confident that we can survive during these strange and challenging times.”

“We have now made the decision to roll all season tickets over into 2021 automatically unless the holder requests a refund. Any refund requests will be granted without hesitation and I ask anybody who would prefer this to email me directly, to duffill.redcarbears@gmail.com using the subject ‘Season Ticket Refund’. We completely understand and respect everyone’s situation is different and that some supporters would prefer to take this route. All supporters that decide to roll their tickets over to 2021 will be shown our gratitude by gaining access to every single race meeting in 2021, whether it be a league, cup, open or play off match. We want to show our supporters that we do not take their support for granted and want to give them something back.”

“I would also like to acknowledge our riders and staff, who have never put us under any pressure for information that we could not offer and have demonstrated nothing but understanding and commitment to our club. It has been a financially challenging time for most people and our riders have probably felt that more than most as their livelihood was taken away from them overnight. The advice that I gave to our riders just after the outbreak of this pandemic was to take employment if they could and not to worry if that compromised their ability to commit to racing this year. We couldn’t promise them anything and I didn’t expect them to put their lives on hold for something that may not happen. All of them have worked during this time and I’m pleased that they have had some much needed income.”

“I would like to make it very clear that we are committed to our team and all 7 Bears will be invited back to race for us next year, assuming the relevant loaning clubs and 2021 regulations allow that to happen. The Redcar promotion do not want to change anything and we will honour their 2020 contracts in 2021 if that is possible. All 7 riders from our 2020 team have told us that they want to be at Redcar next year and nothing would make us happier than to see that happen.”

“In the meantime, we have been opening our stadiums doors to riders for private hire and practice sessions recently. This is something that we would like to continue right through to next season as it is bringing some much needed income to the club. We also have an amateur meeting planned for the 9^th August and hope to announce dates for more of them soon. Unfortunately, we are unable to allow spectators at this moment in time but encourage supporters to keep watching our social media pages for updates as this may change in the future.”

“I have also been asked if we would be willing to stage an individual or open meeting in October if we are allowed to at that time. My answer to that is that it’s a little too early to decide, but we are not ruling anything out at this time. Again, please keep an eye on our website and social media as this will be the first place you will see any news from us.”

“I’ll end by sending our best wishes to all of our supporters, staff, sponsors and riders. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions and I will do my best to get back to you as soon as possible. There are challenging times ahead, but I’m confident that British Speedway will bounce back from this as its promoters are 100% committed to our sport. I know that there’s been a massive effort and complete dedication to rescuing this season against all the odds and it has come as a major blow to the association to have all of that hard work undone. The BSPL have never given up, I can assure you of that and it’s a huge boost that the association’s media partner Eurosport have confirmed our contract with them will roll over into 2021!”

At 11.30am this morning, Redcar Speedway were informed that both Premiership and Championship League racing in the UK had been cancelled for 2020. British Speedway Promoters Ltd (BSPL) published a press release for its clubs and supporters at 12.30pm today via the British Speedway official website.

We will be making a detailed statement later today once we have had time to digest this information. We will acknowledge our season ticket holders, sponsors, staff and supporters in our statement.

We apologise that we cannot give you more information at this time, but can assure you we are working on a response at the time of writing.

The BSPL statement can be found here:

http://www.speedwaygb.co.uk/_mobile/news.php?extend.38162