JJJ

This is wonderful news. Jason is a great rider and a fine ambassador for the sport of Speedway. He is a top bloke as well.

Just noticed on Twitter, that Darcy spent a day with Jason Crump concentrating on focus and gating. A master class no doubt. An important point about Chris Holder and the Oz Champs. He gated poorly and was forced to come from behind on many occasions. At Underra, we saw outside lines that had never been seen before. I also think you are being unkind to the other riders. There was some great quality on show and speaks well of the Australian speedway talent pool. I also thought that Josh Grajczonek was outstanding and looks to have a big future.

I saw a barely fit Chris Holder, battle his way through the Australian Championship. He showed skill, guts and determination. He looked every inch a World Champion. Anyone who beats him, will know they have been in a tremendous Speedway contest. Emil, Tai and Wardy are all very, very good and can win. Chris Holder is just better.

B Final 1st - Mason Campton 2nd - Jack Holder Fell- Joey Ringwood Fell (excluded) Brady Kurtz A Final 1st - Mason Campton 2nd - Sam Masters 3rd - Tyler King 4th - Michael Penfold Very pleased to see Taylor Poole return to racing as a reserve. He had two starts for two wins and looked great on the bike. After his severe injuries, the bloke could do with some luck and some opportunities to show his immense talent.

Can we give a BIG thanks to crazysue. The updates are a great source of information for all the fans in Australia. Just back from Gillman. It is a long way. Round 3 was great. I had not seen Gillman before, but it is without doubt, Australia's best speedway venue. It is a credit to the club and supporters. What is left to say about Chris Holder? Courageous, fast, furious, and all the other superlatives. Jason Doyle won more races than anybody. He deserved better than his crash in the A final. His second placing in the Championship shows what a great talent he is. Josh Grajczonek secured third place and won a lot of admirers. He has a big future and a big bag of talent to go with it. Rohan Tungate won the third round. A flat tyre at Kurri, no doubt cost him a podium finish. He rode well at all the venues. It was good to see Mason Campton get a third finish at Gillman. No one tried harder thoughout the series and he was always good to watch. I was not surprised that Troy Batchelor did not start at Gillman. It was a big smash at Undera. We watching about 20 yards away, and it was a sickening crash. The quality of riders is a pleasing sign for this year's World Cup. If these blokes can stay fit and healthy, plus the addition of a certain D.Ward, makes for a team, that will do well.

Report from Undera. I have reached Adelaide and have managed to hook up to the hotel's internet. A great crowd was on hand to witness some great racing. You can see the results above, but that don't really tell he story. In his first heat, Chris Holder came unstuck on turn 2 and hit the deck. Rohan Tungate dropped his bike and avoided a real problem. Chris caught his leg under the fence, and there was some injury concerns which proved unfounded. The big crowd erupted in heat 9, when Chris Holder and Dakota North exchanged the lead on a number of occasions. North won on the line by about an inch. It was a tremendous speedway race. Chris Holder raced like a demon all night and was rewarded with a B final win. The final included Justin Sedgeman who rode well all night. Jason Doyle was almost unstoppable and showed his usual impeccable style. As always, Troy Batchelor was fast and rode well to come from behind on a few occasions. The A final was marred by a nasty crash in turn 2, when Troy Batchelor hit Chris Holder, while contesting the lead and both riders came down. Batchelor was excluded and limped away from the scene. Chris Holder took a few minutes to get to his feet and a hushed crowd were thrilled when it was announced that Chris would take his place in the re-run. Jason Doyle was running inside and missed the crash. Sedgeman dropped his bike and avoided hitting the fallen riders. Chris Holder recontested the final and won thanks to his resilience and mental toughness. We now go to Gillman on Saturday for the final. This has been a great series.

Something I did not mention in my report on the round at Kurri, was the performance of Chris Holder. His gating on the night was very ordinary, which meant he had the pressure of constantly coming from behind. I did notice however, that his own special brand of menacing intensity was returning. This is a characteristic of only the very best riders. He looked like the the fabulous World Champion that he is.

Fantastic night of racing. The standouts at the meeting were the four finalists and Josh Grajczonek. There wasn't a lot between them. Chris Holder looked really fast at the close of the meeting, but Doyley had him covered - just. Heat 19 saw a nasty fall following a clash between Chris Holder and Dakota North. Fortunately, both riders got up quickly and took part in the re-run. In heat 20, Kurt Shields ran into Cam Woodward on turn 4 and came down heavily. He walked away after a few minutes. Hard luck story was Rohan Tungate, who looked to be on winning charge in heat 18, when he was forced to withdraw due to a flat rear tyre. His body language indicated he was not happy. He looked to have lost his chance for at least a B Final appearance. We now go to Undera on Wednesday, with the title wide open. It's a 10 hour + drive, but I am sure it will be worth it.

Less than 3 hours to start time. Weather is fine. Current temp is 28 degrees C. A big crowd should turn out for this one.

From what I saw, he was a special. For those who do not know, this has been one of the hottest summers ever recorded in Australia. In the desert areas yesterday, temperatures reached 50 degrees C. That temperature is hard to imagine. Queensland is also severely affected. No wonder equipment is breaking down.

Spot on Ned. Morris was a no show. I didn't hear any explanation given at the track. I will admit though, we were having a good time and may have missed something. The usual suspects qualified. The standouts were Mason Campton, Sam Masters and Tyson Nelson. Max Fricke was good too. Looking forward to tomorrow. The racing will be awesome.

I have seen Nick race a few times this year. I expect he will be the top qualifier. He is in great form.

Good news. I have a fellow traveller, so we will be going to Gillman. So it is Friday and Saturday at Kurri. Wednesday will be at Undera and on to South Australia for the Saturday round. It will be a week where, too much speedway is barely enough. The winners will come from the seeded riders. Only Nick Morris stands out among the qualifiers and his form has been good. Undera is again the key to a top result. The top four will be Chris Holder, Troy Batchelor, Jason Doyle and Cameron Woodward. Last year, Doyley only managed 7 points at Undera, but an improvement can be expected and will be needed if he is to break through. Cameron Woodward is a classy rider and goes well everywhere. Chris Holder after his comeback, is improving with every ride. At his best he should win, but he will be tested by the others. Troy Batchelor especially will exploit any weaknesses. There will not be any of this going through the series undefeated. If you are looking for a dark horse, try Josh Grajczonek. At his best, this bloke can beat anybody. He just needs that consistency that the best riders have. It should be a great series.

Just got back from Kurri. After 5 Rides: B Final - Ryan Douglas , Rohan Tungate, Dakota North, Nick Morris. Result: 1- Ryan Douglas 2- Nick Morris 3- Rohan Tungate Titanic struggle between the top 3. A Final - Chris Holder, Brady Kurtz, Ryan Douglas, Jason Doyle Result: 1- Chris Holder 2- Jason Doyle 3- Brady Kurtz Jason Doyle led for the first couple of laps, but Chris Holder passed on the inside of turn 3. There was very little between them

First class entry list: 1. Tyson Snow 2. Mason Campton 3. Tyler King 4. Todd Kurtz 5. Chris Holder 6. Jack Holder 7. Rohan Tungate 8. Nick Morris 9. Daine Stevens 10. Brady Kurtz 11. Jake Allen 12. Hunter Anderson 13. Sam Masters 14. Dakota North 15. Jason Doyle 16. Ryan Douglas 1. Allan Macdonald 2. Max Fricke 3. Gavin Crisafi 4. Josh Fletcher 5. Jordan Dall 6. Jye Etheridge 7. Josh Macdonald I assume the second 1-7 have to qualify. Difficult to see why Max Fricke is not in the lead group. He is the U21 Champion. Chris Holder returns to racing and has got some gifted individuals forming the comeback reception committee. Apart from Chris, the standouts are Rohan Tungate, Nick Morris, Dakota North and Jason Doyle. Brady Kurtz and partner in youthful exuberance, Jack Holder, could unlock their tremendous toolbox of talent and take away the post Christmas booty. Should be a great night of speedway. At 8am on Boxing Day morning, the weather looks a bit iffy. The forecast however, (for what it is worth), is promising.

I'll start a new thread, with the entry list. Boxing Night at Kurri is always a must.

Undera is smallish and not very wide. It is critical to gate well there, as it is difficult to come from behind. It is technically challenging and not so much the full throttle, big squirt like Gillman or Kurri. It is important to know that it is in the middle of nowhere. Be careful travelling at night, because the area has a large population of big kangaroos. I hit one coming back from the speedway last year and the resulting off road experience, was almost my last. I was lucky. If you are going to hit an Australian marsupial, it is best to do it in an Australian car.

I was sitting in the Members's Stand at the Showground that night, about 50 yards from where Geoff had his accident. For me, Speedway is the most thrilling spectator sport in the world. At the same time, it can be the most tragic.

I got to Kurri and Undera last year. Stopped off at Glenrowan, right in Ned Kelly country. Will do both again this year. I would like to go to Gillman, but it is a long, long way.

Cj69 is right. Woodward won the Victorian and the SA titles and came third in last year's championship. Cameron is a class act. Jack Holder qualified in lieu of Brady Kurtz. I saw Brady win the NSW title last Saturday in a blistering display. An intersection of speed, ambition and quality was never going to be denied. I don't know why he didn't enter for the National Championship. If i get a chance, I'll ask him.

Motorcycling Australia have announced the entries and seeds. The eight seeded riders are: Dakota North, Jason Doyle, Cameron Woodwood, Rohan Tungate, Chris Holder, Jack Holder, Troy Batchelor, Josh Grajczonek. Other entrants who will attempt to qualify: Mason Campton, Hunter Anderson, Tyson Nelson, Justin Sedgmen, Brodie Waters, Jake Allen, Nick Morris, Alan MacDonald, Sam Masters, Jake Anderson, Daine Stevens, Matthew Day, Jye Etheridge, Tyson Snow, Joey Ringwood, Max Fricke. I can only assume a number of notable riders have not entered.

Full results are available at the Kurri Speedway site: http://www.kurrikurrispeedway.org.au/results.html

I am glad I do not have to pick the seeds for this one. There is just so much talent. Just to qualify via the Friday night event, would be a great achievement. My top eight would be: Troy Batchelor, Chris Holder, Cameron Woodward, Dakota North, Rohan Tungate, Brady Kurtz, Josh Grajczonek and Jason Doyle. To be honest, I could name at least six more. This list assumes all those named have entered and one D.Ward will not be riding. Entries closed a few days ago, but I am yet to see all the names. This series will be great.

It proved to be a great night of racing. The final was won by Brady Kurtz. Second was Jack Holder (the B Final winner), with Rohan Tungate third. Todd Kurtz completed the final quartet. The final was the race of the night. Tungate got the jump with Holder and Kurtz close behind. Tungate was mugged on the second lap first by Holder and then Kurtz. Kurtz then passed Holder, with a sensational sweep around the outside. Brilliant stuff. These young blokes were amazing. I don't know if they have any clubs for 2014, but they have the potential to wow fans in Europe. Notable names to go out in the B Final, were Sam Masters and Alex Davies. Meeting favourite, Jason Doyle had a night he would rather forget. An equipment failure in the opening heat, set the tone for the evening. It appeared that his engines were down on power.

The Classic was won by Gino Manzares. Second was Rohan Tungate. Jason Doyle was third. Gino Manzares, proved his dominance on the night, by also winning the Lap Dash.