SpeedwaySlider72

But the world wasn’t so different 10 to 20 years ago (late 00s and 10s). The riders had two bikes, the sport had a professional look, but the doubling up rot hadn’t set in. The consequences of the doubling up mess are far reaching. Stifling opportunities for new riders, inflating rider income expectations, undermining the integrity of the sport, creating some belief that one league can’t operate without the other.

Did you follow the sport maybe 10 to 20 years ago before this convoluted doubling up mess allowed for this new norm for riders to exist? Before this only the very best could make a full time living out of it. The sport didn't do too badly back then. The height of ambition is not to be a semi-pro sport but that may be the medicine the sport needs at this time and we'll all need to accept it for the sport to move forward.

Should a rider only be able to ride in one league then their income will of course reduce, but that does not make the leagues dependent on each other. There are many riders that currently get by only riding in one league and using their spare time to seek additional income from elsewhere. To say the Championship needs the Premiership would be the same as saying the Championship needs Tesco/Amazon/the local garage/wherever the rider may seek a secondary income. In your example, a rider riding Championship only will make £20,000. It should be remembered that the season lasts about 6 months now, maybe 7 at a squeak. Is £20,000 for half a year's work not a decent return? Bearing in mind that during this 6 months, the rider may only have to ride approximately once a week on average and allowing generously another day a week for bike maintenance then the £20,000 starts to sound like not too bad an amount to be able to extract from a sport on the brink of bankruptcy. I place no blame at the door of riders on this front but both promoters and riders need to be realistic. Many riders ride one league and work hard to fund their careers through other means. Simon Lambert is a great example of this and all the credit to him.

That's just not true. All sports have good and bad matches. Speedway can be incredible and mediocre, like every sport.

If you believe that the big decisions in any other major sports league are made by an independent body then you are mistaken. The rules may be implemented by an independent body but the direction of the leagues is very much set by the team owners. The team owners make up the operating company of the leagues and will employ a CEO/Commissioner (who head up a team of staff) to implement their vision but they are ultimately answerable to the collective will of the teams.

Define successful? Is winning the top league but losing a mountain of cash more successful than running a profitable enterprise at a lower level? There are different definitions of success but unless the Premiership can offer a financially sustainable model then Championship clubs appear to be sensibly choosing to stay at a level that is viable.

You have been vocal with your feelings on this. Do you not think the onus is on the Premiership to make it an appealing proposition for a club to move up rather than blaming clubs for sticking in the Championship where they run a more sensible operating model for their business? The Premiership has been shedding clubs in recent years - why would anyone wish to join it at this time?

As the sport barely runs 6 months of the year now, 'semi-pro' could mean 6 months pro and 6 months working to fund their semi-pro speedway career. Riders may cry about this but if the sport keeps heading in the direction it is then their speedway career will become an amateur hobby. Everyone needs to wake up and realise this. Unnecessary costs must also be cut so that riders and clubs have a chance at survival.

The vast majority of sports are amateur or semi-pro, including olympic athletes. Those competitors make it work but you say speedway riders cannot?

You have posted much recently saying that the Premiership must be maintained at its current level. If these 'couple of Danes' and a handful of GP riders disappear because of this Polish rule then what level is the Premiership left at?

With their new found spare time, the riders can seek additional work outside of the speedway and the sport can return to a sustainable semi-professional level. Full time speedway riders on crowds between 500 and 1000 can't be sustainable.

Maybe financial considerations. Sounds like most teams lost big bucks this year and with rumours of no tv deal must be terrified.

Maybe British speedway can exist without these riders and focus on the ones that want to race in Britain as a priority? This opens up opportunities for young riders to establish themselves and clubs become more stable as they don't live beyond their means by paying riders who don't see Britain as a priority.

Perhaps such riders will need to find a different vocation.

Team building averages balance things up as you know ...and the teams won't be losing spadefuls of cash as many are right now. That's the main point of the shake up.