customhouseregular

I don't know about 2015 but Round 4 of SEC is on Eurosport this coming Friday, and I for one will be watching and cheering Emil on to victory (hopefully).

I don't suppose this meeting is being shown on tv?.

You said it Sidney...Hancock v Pedersen, no contest. I am willing Greg to win title no. 3.

I seem to have given the wrong impression here. My point was if at some time in the future we lose Cardiff, where do we go if 40,000 want to attend the British GP?. The new Belle Vue I'm sure will be perfect for everything else, but not for a GP if the attendance is to hold up. Okay, Wembley, Old Trafford and Etihad may be "pie in the sky" but 20 years ago did anyone really envisage a stadium like the Millenium staging Speedway's showcase meeting?. Tonight's GP had everything including a deserved winner and I for one enjoyed it, even if I am a boring old fart who pines for the old days!.

Well, that had just about everything. Where there's trouble there's Pedersen. Very unpleasant reaction and he wonders why people turn against him.

Sorry? I was under the impression the stand held a little under 2,000 with the remaining 4,000ish on terraces. My apologies if I have that wrong but the basis of my argument is valid no?.

If this is meant to be a National Stadium and the permanent capacity is only 6.000, increasing to 18.000 with temporary facilities, this appears to me a tad "Mickey Mouse". Most of the 6,000 is standing room out in the open. It says much for Speedway attendance in the UK if this is the best we can offer. If Cardiff do not renew their contract to stage the British GP in a few years time, where does it go?. 40,000 in to Belle Vue does not go but Manchester would be ideal, in the absence of Wembley of course. Has anyone sounded out Old Trafford or the Etihad?.Cardiff has shown it can be done. A National Stadium needs to be a showcase for the sport. I hope I'm not being to disrespectful here.

That's the beauty of Speedway my friend.

Thanks for your replies folks. Sadly the old Wembley is gone but the new Wembley is here. I understand Cardiff have a long-term contract to stage the British GP, but is anything stopping Wembley staging a major Speedway meeting?. I wrote to the Wembley Management months ago re the possibility of an 80th. World Speedway Championship meeting, featuring every World Champion still riding plus as many of the world's top riders as possible, to be staged in September 2016...80 years after the first World Final. I never had a reply.

I was talking to my 86 year-old Mum earlier. She and my my 90 year-old Dad were pre-war and post-war West Ham fans, as was I during the 60's. We both feel that modern-day Speedway with it's "showbiz" approach, silencers, dirt deflectors and general "sanitised" presentation has lost the common touch. Speedway back then with it's basic machinery and rough edges appealed to the "working man". The current glossiness of the GP's has taken the edge off for a lot of us oldies. I was like a schoolboy going to Cardiff for my first meeting in 30 years, but left feeling I would not rush to go back next year. Having said that I still love my sport and will be tuning in to Eurosport tonight for the Nordic GP...sadly sans Greg. p.s.-The Odsal stadium, with some money and a lot of tlc would, in my humble opinion be a great venue for a United Kingdom GP (If Poland can have 3, we can have 2!).

I can't argue with that. On a different note---I have been critical in the past of Chris Harris for his inconsistency, particularly at International level. However, his recent league scores have been top-drawer so I would like to wish him good luck in the GP Challenge next week.

Put-down tracks...was not Wembley a put-down track?. I quite agree, a permanent track built specifically for regular racing and preferably well over 300m. is preferable. However, that does limit the choice of venues somewhat. I have never been to Gorzow or Torun but on tv evidence, I think I would rather watch a GP there than at Cardiff.

The truth is there are a hell of a lot of talented young riders out there but only a handful will ever make it to the top. The GP qualification system makes it hard to get in and stay in. In my humble opinion as a 66 year old long-time fan, it was easier in days gone by for a talented young rider to mature and make his mark.

Hmmm...I take your point about previous GP winners. At that rate the whole series would be made up of wildcards!. I must admit (being of the old-school speedway fan variety) that I have misgivings about the GP system, it's scoring, qualification, wildcards etc., but accept it is the system we now have Being at Wembley in 1981 with 92,000 for the world Final outshone being in Cardiff on 12th. July...for this old fan anyway.

Nobody should compete at a financial loss but is competing for a World title a matter of money?.

I am at a loss to understand the Sayfutdinov situation. The man obviously wants to be European Champion and probably will be this time next week. He obviously wants to be World Champion as evidenced by his blistering start to the 2013 GP campaign, so why not enter the qualifiers or why turn down a wildcard?. Sayfutdinov is a World Champion elect and needs to be in for 2015...he needs to be offered a wildcard and he needs to accept it.

Am I being naive here but if a rider is good enough to have won a GP he deserves being in contention for a wildcard. This puts Sayfutdinov, Zmarzlik, Smolinski and others firmly in the frame. My problem with wildcards is the practice of the host track nominating their wildcard. This is fine for Poland, Denmark etc. but in the case of New Zealand and Finland for example and in the past Croatia, Italy etc. non-competitive riders have taken the 16 jacket at the expense of someone better qualified.

Really sad to see Greg out of the GP. I am quite certain his record will never be beaten. Hopefully he will still win the title this year...World Champion at 44 would be one hell of an achievement. If a system whereby the total points scored over the GP's ridden were used to determine the title, GP's missed due to injury would not be counted. It would have to be injury only...riders could not disregard GP's missed due to suspension. It seems inherently unfair that riders have to rely on wildcards if injury prevents them reaching the top 8, whilst lesser riders qualify by virtue of competing in all 12 rounds.

Sayfutdinov is undoubtedly one of the world's top 6 riders, and is likely to be crowned European Champion on the 19th. September. If the GP series is there to decide World Champions, the series has to have the top riders, so Emil has to be given a wild-card. No disrespect to Chris Harris, but if he is in for 2015 and Sayfutdinov is out it will be a travesty.

All-time favourites?...Harrfeldt, Briggs, Nordin, Collins, Penhall, Sjosten, Michanek, Moore to name a few.

Had Penhall not retired I'm sure he would have been good for more titles, and quite probably post-1984. However it was not to be so I have to agree with most others and say Nielsen and Gunderson for the majority of the years in question. Much would depend on how many GP's were held each year and where.

For me it has to be Gote Nordin. The man was pure class.

In my humble opinion the best rider never to become World Champion was Gote Nordin. The man was pure class.

I watched my first-ever Speedway meeting at Rye House in 1960, so the place holds fond memories for me. I would be sad to see them go.

Does anyone really believe this will ever get built/.