MrMungo

Over recent years, BV have made a few riders (Steve Worrall, Max Fricke spring to mind, but there could be others) assets, have those purchases been finalised, or will they revert back to their previous clubs?

Depends how you look at it. Didn't Pearson say he had something like 1.00 EL away average?

His most recent PL average was 5.36, although that may change slightly when the final averages are released.

There's always some post-AGM info coming out, and I reckon more info will be forthcoming about it sooner or later. I'm sure there will be some unannounced restrictions put in place. Surely! Right?

Is there a big Bjerre?

I suppose a few unfortunate engine failures would be a way around it, if they really felt that strongly about it. Honestly though, the difference between the 2 leagues will basically be the smallest it's ever been. The biggest downfall would be geography. EL is now largely southern, whereas PL is mostly northern.

What this AGM has demonstrated to me is how regionalised the leagues have become. In fact, if in 2018, Ipswich and P'boro both move up, and for whatever reason Belle Vue drop down, we will literally have a Northern and Southern League, despite being named something else. I'm not sure if this is unfortunate, intentional, or merely coincidental....

I do love your way with words, Shovlar! Rye is a great little track, and is definitely worth a visit. It has lost some of its charm since they altered the track, but still can produce some fine racing. Hopefully they can make a good go of it since Lakeside's decision to drop down.

You're wrong, Gavan. They will simply take the PL average.

With only 10 Championship sides, the biggest downside to me, looks like there'll be a lot of riders without a spot in that league

With Newman, Kurtz's and Ellis (who I presume retains his old PL average) all on attractive averages, he's not done too bad of it although I suspect it's not the AGM he was hoping for

will be great to have Rye in Premiership, looking forward to seeing what sort of side they put out

BRITISH Speedway is ready to bounce back in 2017 – after the biggest revamp of the sport in modern history. Club bosses have spent three days voting through plans to restructure league racing in the UK which sees both Rye House and second tier champions Somerset taking the plunge with promotion to the top flight. And there’s good news for fans of troubled Leicester and Belle Vue with both clubs, who boast a rich heritage, ready to come to the tapes again – and at the top level. Workington are expected to take their place in the Premiership, but this is subject to confirmation. The leagues have been rebranded Speedway Great Britain (SGB) Premiership and SGB Championship – and promotion and relegation has been introduced with the leagues coming closer together. The winners of the Championship play-offs will race the Premiership’s bottom club to decide who rides in the 2018 SGB Premiership. The same rules and race format, last year’s PL programme, will apply to both leagues – that means tactical rides are available when 10-points down from heats 5-12. The injury rider-replacement rule will also now be in place in both leagues. And the season will start with Knockout Cup meetings at both levels before the launch of the exciting new leagues. All riders will now have one average, based on Premier League figures, for team building purposes with a 50-point limit for the top division and 40 for the Championship. It means riders who only raced in the Elite League last season will see their average increased by 1.4 to bring them in line with Premier League averages. The only difference in team building rules between the leagues is that Championship clubs must include a British youngster with a three-point average. And in a bid to help young riders get team spots, any rider who hasn’t achieved a three-point average will come in on a minimum of 2. No team changes will be permitted in either league after July 31. The British Speedway Promoters’ Association also intend to work with the new Gerhard engine after a visit to the Switzerland base of the GTR. This will reduce costs for riders with engines typically needing a fraction of the servicing of other engines. More details will follow once the arrangement is concluded. Promoters feel this dramatic revamp was necessary in a financially challenging climate – and whilst chairman Keith Chapman admits there is an element of cost cutting there is plenty for fans and sponsors to be excited about. He said: “This was probably the best AGM I’ve been to in all my time in the sport. “There was a genuine desire to try and change things and secure the future of league racing in the UK. I certainly think we have done that and I’m very excited about the months ahead. “Every promoter acknowledged something had to be done after some very difficult times for the sport – now we’ve done something and I’m looking forward to a bright future.” Vice Chairman Rob Godfrey said: “I believe we have achieved a total restructuring of British Speedway. “We have created leagues which are sustainable and have a structure with promotion and relegation and the same rules. “Now we have rebranded the sport, it’s time to deliver.” SGB PREMIERSHIP 2017: Belle Vue, Coventry, King’s Lynn, Leicester, Poole, Rye House, Somerset, Swindon, Wolverhampton. SGB CHAMPIONSHIP: Berwick, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Ipswich, Newcastle, Peterborough, Redcar, Scunthorpe, Sheffield, Workington* (*subject to confirmation). Two home, two away, top four into play-offs. KNOCKOUT CUP DRAW: PREMIERSHIP: Preliminary: Somerset v Leicester. 1st Round: Rye House v Swindon, King’s Lynn v Leicester or Somerset, Wolverhampton v Coventry, Belle Vue v Poole. CHAMPIONSHIP: Preliminary: Peterborough v Redcar, Workington v Newcastle. 1st Round: Scunthorpe v Peterborough or Redcar, Glasgow v Workington or Newcastle, Berwick v Ipswich, Edinburgh v Sheffield. MAJOR EVENTS VENUES: BRITISH FINAL: TBC PREMIERSHIP RIDERS’ INDIVIDUAL: Belle Vue. PREMIERSHIP PAIRS: Rye House. CHAMPIONSHIP RIDERS’ INDIVIDUAL: Glasgow. CHAMPIONSHIP PAIRS: Somerset. CHAMPIONSHIP FOURS: Peterborough. MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE: Keith Chapman (Chairman), Rob Godfrey (Vice-Chairman), Chris Van Straaten, George English, Colin Pratt.

50 limit in Premiership. 40 in Championship. All based on PL averages.....

Sounds like an awful lot of changes!

I daren't think. However, it is not down to that meeting alone. The financial side of Belle Vue has not been well run at all. They owed riders thousand and thousands at the end of last season. One rider was, I believe, owed over £20k. They were still paying off the riders from last year after this season had started. I just hope a happy solution can be found eventually, but sounds like it may take some time.

Sad news, but unfortunately not a shock. Hoping for an happy ending for the Aces

There have been some rumours going around for a fair few weeks now....

I don't believe No Name is suggesting Lee Trigger was the problem. It's more to do with the fact that both David Short and William (Ashley) Taylor were largely in the background, and effectively lacked a 'frontman' or leader, if you prefer. In essence, that frontman was Lee Trigger.

Which of the Swindon riders were owned by Somerset?

Yes! Got numerous speedway meetings on the ol' tapes. Normally just watch the odd meeting on Youtube now. Most recent one was Pairs from Vojens in '93.

Do you mean National League?

Cradley fans would miss Mr Drury too much?

There's been talk of a a whole host of sides potentially moving up to the EL, if only half of them are true, it does leave the PL looking rather vulnerable with concerns (of varying degrees) over the viability of other clubs being added into the mix. Are there any NL teams likely to make the move up to PL?

Bit of a shock start to the AGM; do wonder whether any attempts to have fixed race night(s) in the EL have led Lakeside to making that decision.