truthsayer

Err, um, nicely. Number, number, great guns, terrific ride, coming on strong. No doubt about that.

Speedway's been falling down the leagues for years. Sky Sports, to BT Sport, to Eurosport. Reality is that this crap presentation is a real reflection of the sport. I give speedway three more years as a 'professional' sport.

I've changed the commentary to Danish and it's much more watchable.

We're speedway fans. You could make a Harold Macmillan reference and we'd still be of THAT age.

It's this. A piece of real estate being used for three hours a week, seven months a year, just isn't viable. Community stadiums have to be the way ahead, sharing facilities with other sports, like greyhounds, hockey, bangers etc. With training facilities where people can pay to play and other revenue streams, like conferences and other events. Even then it's hard to see that it would be more lucrative than housing or retail space, but at least it could be viable...

The championship may be over but you can add some extra spice to your viewing by playing some Tatum Bingo: https://bingobaker.com#7425ca0882144223 Click the link to generate your game card and don't forget to post 'LINE' or 'HOUSE' when you've marked off the appropriate Tatum catchphrases. Add some spice by necking a shot every time you get a square. Guaranteed you'll be sloshed by seven!

No question about that.

It is sad. Tatum used to be the co-commentator but now he's been thrust into the role of lead commentator and he's just not very good at that. I was never a big fan before, but at least Nigel Pearson used to be able to get the best out of him. They had some chemistry and Pearson was a strong broadcaster who was able to steer the ship.

Probably the same number of times he unnecessarily says 'number'

Always putting his 'best foot forward'

Peterborough is a track that has historically destroyed tyres. I don't know any more than that, but I do know that when I was involved in the sport around 30 years ago the Dunlops and Barums of the time used to get absolutely hammered. I expect it wouldn't take a significant thing to go from hammering tyres to catastrophic failure. Could be incorrect storage of the tyres, a small change in track surface, temperature or more likely a combination of many factors.

Speedway's done next year. Hard to imagine clubs will be able to rustle up enough funds to pay the electricity bills, let alone all the other rising costs affecting business right now.

The issue is that Artem Laguta is a Polish citizen. If he wasn't, he would be screwed, but hard to imagine that a court would stop a Polish citizen working as a speedway rider because of where he was born. Internationally it becomes more complicated, but if he is eligible to race he must sure be allowed to 'defend' his title. Not sure Emil would get the same invitation, but surely Laguta must get a pick.

And someone really needs to tell him that his 'Dirtometer' is really just a screwdriver.

I find it particularly irritating the way he says 'number' before he says any, erm, number. Gate NUMBER one. Heat NUMBER two. Turn NUMBER four. Even semi finals. Semi final NUMBER one. You don't need to say number, bro! All. The. F***ing time! And that's before we have the perennial 'I have to say', 'Set fair' and all the other classics. Such a limited vocabulary. It's a shame because of his co-commentator's death but he's no lead, for sure.

I agree. And the fact that there are other Aussies and Brits makes them vulnerable. But they are former world champions and Tai is still a major star.

But nowhere near as annoying as Kelvin Tatum and his five phrases being repeated ad nauseum.

Laguta is a Polish citizen. Hard to see him being denied labour next year for that sole reason. And if he is riding surely he must get a pick if he wants it.

Some big names are going to miss out on the GP in 2023. Assuming that the Euro champion gets a place, and that Laguta will probably get a pick, guys like Doyle and Woffinden might not be there next year.

Super racing. I just can't listen to Kelvin Tatum though. I know it's a tragic situation but he is a truly awful lead commentator.

Oh man. We've just run out of vodka. We have a drinking game where we take a shot every time Tatum says 'number'. That's two bottles and I ain't going to work tomorrow!

It's like taking full insurance cover on a rental car. It's all about money. I don't know the costs involved, but I'll estimate it to be around £500 saved per meeting. x 20 meetings a year, that's £10k saved. Chances of it affecting the meeting, pretty slim. If they find themselves in this situation once every three years, chances are that financially it's right just to go with one and take a hit when the worst does happen. That's assuming they are actually able to find medical cover.

Don't necessarily agree with that. At an elite level, bikes that are easier to ride are likely to lead to more processional racing as the skill level required to ride them to the maximum is reduced. That said, there is a need to create engines which are cheaper and easier to maintain, as well as easier to ride, for competitors at a lower level.

Almost every sport is essentially a 'participation' sport. In other words, people pay their dues and take part for their own entertainment. Then, at some level, people pay to watch and it becomes a 'spectator' or 'professional' sport. The amateur ranks far outweigh the professional ones. British speedway is the only sport I can think of where the vast majority of meetings take place in front of paying spectators. But there are not enough riders and not enough facilities for riders to practice and develop. There needs to be an amateur level. Not just an amateur level, but a predominantly amateur level. Seriously. 90% of British speedway should be amateur, 5% 'semi-professional' and no more than 5% fully professional. Speedway is a relatively cheap form of motorsport, especially at an amateur level. For example, a rider in a support class at British super bikes will pay £400 for entry fees, £1000 for tyres and £100 for fuel each weekend. That's doing it cheap in one of the lower classes, and without the cost of buying the motorcycles (think £20k) and repairing them. Out of the 160-ish riders competing in BSB this weekend, I'd suggest 130 are paying for the privilege, around 20 are cost neutral and only a few are actually making a living. At club level, 100% are paying for the privilege. Speedway doesn't have enough riders. This is the main flaw in the business plan.

In the context of motorsports, speedway is very inexpensive.