PHILIPRISING

NO ... it doesn't work like that. Any money the FIM receive from speedway (not just from BSI/IMG but inscription and licence fees, etc) goes into their pot and is distributed, spent, etc at the discretion of the member countries through their own General Council and puts appointed officers. SVEMO, for example, have used money generated directly by the SGP to them (not via the FIM) to the benefit of speedway in Sweden. But they, like Denmark, have a club culture which is ultimately much more beneficial to the sport as a whole in their respective countries than the set-up (BSPA) in the UK.

BUT then you are not an aspiring young rider hoping to become World Champion. There are lots of examples of other sports where contestants place winning before financial gain. It's called something like ambition. The world will be a poorer place without it.

OF course the rewards are not enough. How can they be when prima donna footballers get £250,000 (tax free) a week to stay on the bench. But that sort of money isn't available in speedway. And, as argued previously, racing n the SGP isn't all about the money. Crump is one of many who believes that their careers have been considerably enhanced and enriched by racing at stadiums like the Millennium in Cardiff and competing in such a series and that memories will be worth much in later years.

AND your evidence of these privileged people lording it up in first class is? Have you spoken to Ward? Probably not. He is a young man, actually quite sensible beneath his Aussie Jack the Lad veneer. Of course he is tempted by an offer from Torun worth a lot of money. But there is more to it than that. Riding in the SGP demands a lot of organisation, extra responsibilities for mechanics, more bikes, etc, etc. He believes that at present he may not be quite ready for that side of the GP and that he needs more sponsorship too. He knows he is good enough on the track. It is possible, though less likely, that he would have declined an invitation for 2012 even if he had also been able to accept a contract from Torun. He has time on his side. He witnessed what happened to Woffinden. He will get his chance again and deservedly so. Far great judges that I could ever aspire to be, including ex and current top, top riders, believe him to be an exceptional talent. We should be grateful that he has emerged and that isn't wholly down to Britain. He spent days and days riding round the Torun track improving his technique. It will be a great shame if he doesn't compete in the SGP next year but it will only heighten the anticipation of when he does. Before long hopefully he will be joined by riders like the Pawlicki brothers, Janowski, Sundstrom, young Danes and (fingers crossed) a rejuvenated and reformed Woffinden who has it within his grasp to become a World class rider.

THAT'S why they work ... the drama that goes right to the end. I saw many World Finals when the title was all but won before the last race, quite often they ended in an anti-climax. And these days, like it or not, TV is the major consideration. They way everything to go to the wire whether it be GP speedway or one-day cricket. Speedway on TV has to try and appeal to non-afficiendos as well as the diehard fans. When I wrote daily newspaper stories for the Express a million years ago I was constantly told by the Sports Editor that they weren't simply going in fort the benefit of speedway fans. That's why household names mean everything and why, at present, speedway in the UK is ignored while in Poland it (Gollob) is headline news.

FAR be it for me to defend the FIM but re your last comment: what planet are you on?

I WAS referring to how they decide their World Championships ... i.e. over a series rather than a single event. If there were millions and millions to be made out of speedway no doubt the FIM would plunder a bigger share of the spoils. But, as said here before, my understanding is that speedway is the second biggest contributor to the FIM coffers.

YOU cannot judge rider income generated through the SGP by prize money alone.

DON'T see it that way at all. No different to F1 or many other sports, not just the motorised variety.

SPEEDWAY Star's post-GP sales don't vary at all and as we add 16 pages to every edition the week after a GP (at a cost of around £1,600) it has no financial benefit. I am a fan of the GP because I think through originally John Postlethwaite and now IMG the level of professionalism and presentation puts speedway's premier event on a par with any other sporting occasion. It is impossible to equate some of the benefits of the SGP series right down to your local track but it is up to the BSPA and its members to do that. SVEMO use revenue gleaned from the SGP to filter down to invest at lower levels rather than reducing the cost of entry or the price of a programme which is what you appear to want. There is no doubt that many young riders are attracted to speedway because of the SGP, they aspire to race on big occasions in big stadiums and on television around the world. It is these riders who eventually put bums on seats and help provide the revenue at tracks everywhere. Sadly that may not be as true in Britain as it is in many other countries but you cannot blame the SGP for that. Of course IMG are in it to make money but they make huge investments in the SGP infrastructure and take a long term view which is something that was lacking in the past. I make no apology about canvassing for the SGP because I see it as something speedway can be proud of rather than embarrassed about.

WHAT utter tosh. BSI/IMG pay a considerable sum of money to the FIM (putting money back into the sport) that they wouldn't otherwise have, SVEMO use their income from GPs to benefit youth speedway, likewise the DMU. We live in a commercial world. Do FIFA not make money out of the World Cup? Your argument should be about what happens to the money the FIM receive. We do have a proper World Championship but you just can't see it.

I WAS joking and you're right (there, I've said it!) ...

BRIDGER or Ward?

SCHLEIN ... for NZ or the whole series? Has a good chance of the former but probably not the latter.

SURELY it isn't just about the money. Isn't becoming World Champion what the serious riders aspire to? Not even Mastercard can buy you that.

THE capacity for soccer at the old Wembley was 100,000 (or at least that was the official figure and it made for good reading) but World Final attendances never got that high. But it is pretty irrelevant now. Wembley closed its doors to speedway and Odsal became the only viable alternative. But as spiegel points out, interest in UK speedway was considerably higher through the 70s and 80s but had been declining since the immediate post-war era when the Wembley supporters club had over 80,000 members. Crowd of less than 3,000 for a league match in the 70s would also have been deemed very poor. Now that figure is rarely reached outside of the play-offs. The circulation of Speedway Star was twice was it is today in the 70s, yet another indication of how support for speedway in the UK has diminished. As for the riders, it is not hard to imagine that sponsorship deals based on 11 globally televised events (12 next year) are more lucrative than just one. Anyway, as we were saying ... who will get a wild card place next year if Ward, for wholly justifiable reasons, turns down the invitation?

SORRY to correct you but there wasn't 90,000 plus at Wembley in 1981 nor anywhere near 30,000 at Norden. Less than 20,000 at the last World Final staged in the UK.

IF, as seems likely, Darcy Ward defers his inevitable progression to the SGP series for a year who will the FIM and BSI choose to take his place in 2012?

SOMEONE telling porkies?

GOOD for you ...

ImpartialOne is spot on ... since the advent of digital cameras photographers like MP took hundreds of pictures not only one race day but at practice as well.

IS there a better or more skilful rider around than the new World Champion?

THAT'S more like it