Ben91

I think the emphasis with the NDL now is really going to be on development. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. With no stand-alone clubs there is no conflict of interest between sides there to win at all costs and those there to develop riders in a competitive environment. I’ll add that I am very sad to see any clubs close. That we’ve lost two from the third tier is incredibly sad. The over 4.00 Championship rule is no coincidence and again, I’m not against it. The likes of Morley and Clegg shouldn’t still be in the third tier over a decade after their debuts, especially now that the league is truly being framed as a development league. What could have helped riders of that ilk is tighter doubling up rules between the Premiership and Championship. They would be more sought after for clubs in the second tier then. It’s important to remember that the sport doesn’t owe riders a team place though. This is a step in the right direction when it comes to the sport telling the riders the rules to play by rather than bending to their will. At least if it is enforced. Is not allowing certain riders in restriction of trade? No, it’s the rules. I’d love to be a Premier League footballer but I don’t get a go just because I fancy it, nor can I take legal action over it.

That is a shame. Had the potential to go a long way in the sport. Health is of course the most important thing though.

Yes, he’s known as sleight of hand now.

Solid enough side for the Panthers in 2024 by the looks of it.

In the case of Boughen I think it will be up to the rider and his team whether he is ready for a season in the Premiership. Iron sharpens iron so if he can stay headstrong and learn from every meeting even when he isn’t getting results points wise then stepping up would be invaluable for him. Of course Oxford are going to want to compete now that they have stepped up too. Riders mature and peak at different times. Signs are positive with Boughen but if he isn’t an established top tier rider by the end of next season I don’t think we should be writing him off by any means.

I think it’s a great idea. But not at those prices.

That’s disgusting considering it’s just a tarted up shipping container.

Every point up to 8, sometimes 9 counts. Beyond that why take unnecessary risks. It’s not about finding a system that penalises Zmarzlik, it’s about the fact that a perfectly good system for ensuring every single race mattered was replaced with one where the individual heats aren’t as important as the semis and final. Zmarzlik is the best rider in the world. All the conspiracy theories (especially those suggesting he only wins because most of the rounds are in Poland) are frankly a load of BS. He’s just head and shoulders above the competition and knows when the right time to turn it on is.

It seems like Lambert is coming off the back of the best season of his career. On his average and in a slightly weaker league he looks like a very shrewd signing here.

The proof of the pudding is in the eating. Things are bad at the moment, “balanced” opinions reflect that. It isn’t negativity, it’s reality sadly.

No doubt each club’s biggest happy clapper will be appointed to these roles.

There was very rarely an interval at Rye House under Len Silver too. The short grading breaks were your opportunities to use the facilities/get refreshments. Speedway meetings don’t need an interval at all really.

I think the ever dwindling attendances across the sport show fans are less willing to turn up every week. The reality is there are many reasons people don’t attend weekly. The patchy fixture lists (and uncompleted fixtures) have been an embarrassment to the sport. Especially when there have been blank weeks during the height of summer and then a mad rush to finish the season come October when the weather turns. Of course any business wants to make a profit and a weekly one at that. But they also have to be realistic about how their product is consumed. It’s better to make a profit from two meetings a month than a loss from four.

It’s a common system used for drafts in American sports. The worst team in the league gets first pick to help them try and improve. Kind of a moot point in Speedway where the other six riders can change completely from one season to the next.

That famous Australian territory.

I think it has to be done with two leagues. There has to be a tangible difference in quality between each division. It’s interesting to me that the general consensus is that the standard across the board has gone down and that the top tier is filled with second tier riders, it could quite easily be seen that the standard of riders in the second tier is higher since the average conversion rate change/doubling up free-for-all that began 10 or so years back. I’m not saying I subscribe to that opinion, just playing devil’s advocate. One thing that is certain is that Championship fans will be exposed to a lesser product in 2024 (in terms of quality at least, if the racing is competitive then it will soon be forgiven I’m sure). I wonder if these changes have been made with an eye on forcing the hand of the bigger clubs in the Championship into moving up a league next winter. Lowering the points limit in the Championship is probably for the best for the sport long term. But I still fear the changes haven’t been strong enough and loopholes will still be found. Doubling up isn’t regulated for one, and guests being available for any missing rider for another.

The fast track format was horrible. If the riders are in the meeting they have to be in the meeting properly. And no differing ways of calculating averages for me, it’s just unnecessary complication.

It sets a bad precedent. Why should they get a pass because they’ve potentially bitten off more than they can chew by signing up for all the leagues. Teams should want to compete in and win the KO Cup, the second it becomes optional it devalues it for everyone.

The idea that tracks have to have a meeting every week is pretty archaic. You can have too much of a good thing, especially in the current economic climate where people can’t afford to attend every week. I can’t think of any mainstream team sports in which a team has a home match every week either. People are not going to forget about speedway or stop going if there’s not a meeting every week. Look at the patchy fixture lists we’ve been exposed to in recent seasons. There’s a huge novelty factor at Oxford at the moment. The top tier team will become the novelty in 2024 and the Championship team will not be as attractive, especially when fans are picking and choosing meetings. Eventually the top tier novelty factor will wear off too. My concern is that they’re overreaching by making this move.

At NDL level they did. But the top two divisions are supposedly professional, so if you sign up you should be signing up to the full schedule. Treat the competitions with respect, otherwise why should anyone else. As we’ve seen with the Jubilee debacle.

Hopefully not. It devalues that competition if teams are picking and choosing whether they enter it or not.

It is a lowering of standard absolutely. But it is being framed as such to re-establish the difference in levels between the top and second division. Something that it is important to do as there have been too many blurred lines between the two for around a decade now. The problem for customers will be that they won’t see that reflected in the pricing. Overall I think it’s a good move for the sport but again has been done in a bit of a wishy-washy manner.

Hopefully this seemingly barmy idea works out for Oxford. I can’t see how fans will be able to afford to attend meetings in enough numbers to make all the teams break even. I can’t see how they’ll be able to fit all their fixtures in, especially if the Chargers compete in the full version of the third tier. I also think not using the Cheetah’s name that fans identify with for the Premiership side is an error. I wish them well and want to see speedway thriving. I worry that this could jeopardise a track that so much hard work went into bringing back to the sport however.

It will help things by clubs finally cutting their cloth accordingly. Though as Fromafar says those lesser riders will naturally put their wage demands up too. Clubs aren’t closing because of the standard of riders. They’re closing because of the standard of promotion and running of the sport in the main.

You build to the standard available. If that is “NDL” riders then so be it. The problem is of British Speedway’s making, so the sport here has to fix its own mess. Sadly that is done in the form of papering over the cracks with more doubling up generally.