British Grand Prix 2012

[crumpiefan]

I think the blunt answer is that none of our current speedway stadiums are good enough. Not when compared to those in Poland. However, with the National Stadium that's going to change and we'd actually be in a position to make a good case for a 2nd GP.

 

 

thats what i meant,maybe not now,but in 2 or 3 years time.

the point i was trying to make was that as other countries have 2 or more gps then in theory

there is no reason not to give britain another round so long as the facilities are there.

one other question though - with other countries being mentioned for possible gp locations

will the series expand in terms of number of gps or will the current 11 stay roughly the same?

[jellyman]

will the series expand in terms of number of gps or will the current 11 stay roughly the same?

 

I believe that the only reason that Poland currently has so many GPs is because no other country can be found to host them. So in the short term I wouldn't see the number of rounds increasing dramatically even if new venues outside of Poland are found. In the long term I also couldn't see the number of rounds increasing too dramatically due to the league commitments that the GP riders have.

[Paulco]

Let's hope this new Manchester stadium is all we hope it will be . Then we could retain Cardiff as the showpiece event , and have a 2nd GP in Manchester with proper speedway racing on a Hyde Road type track .

[Shadders]

For you to at least make eye contact as you walk past me

To be fair to Ben, unless you were standing on a box it would be difficult to make any sort of eye contact with you!

[Shadders]

Let's hope this new Manchester stadium is all we hope it will be . Then we could retain Cardiff as the showpiece event , and have a 2nd GP in Manchester with proper speedway racing on a Hyde Road type track .

From what I've seen in the artists impression the new Manchester track will be more of a Leicester/Newcastle shape than Hyde Road which for what I've seen in photos was more like the Sheffield/Peterborough in shape although slightly longer I'd imagine

Edited June 28, 2011 by Shadders

[Haza]

I think the blunt answer is that none of our current speedway stadiums are good enough. Not when compared to those in Poland. However, with the National Stadium that's going to change and we'd actually be in a position to make a good case for a 2nd GP.

the only UK track that could stage a GP with room to put up temp stands and has the car parking as well is Pboro they have room to put the stands up .Also easy to get to just off tha A1 .

[Paulco]

From what I've seen in the artists impression the new Manchester track will be more of a Leicester/Newcastle shape than Hyde Road which for what I've seen in photos was more like the Sheffield/Peterborough in shape although slightly longer I'd imagine

Artists impressions i saw of the new Leicester track looked exciting , sadly that has turned out to be far from the case in reality .

With a blank canvas to work from , and the importance of getting it right - then if they open the new Manchester venue with a Leicester/Newcastle type circuit - then they want shooting .

We so badly need a Bydgoszcz/Leszno type set-up in this country . A purpose built stadium with a spacious and exciting race track . The people behind the Manchester project dare not mess it up .

[PHILIPRISING]

Artists impressions i saw of the new Leicester track looked exciting , sadly that has turned out to be far from the case in reality .

With a blank canvas to work from , and the importance of getting it right - then if they open the new Manchester venue with a Leicester/Newcastle type circuit - then they want shooting .

We so badly need a Bydgoszcz/Leszno type set-up in this country . A purpose built stadium with a spacious and exciting race track . The people behind the Manchester project dare not mess it up .

 

BYDGOSZCZ and Leszno don't even start to compare with either Torun or Gorzow or even Gorican ... but even those venues, magnificent though they undoubtedly are in speedway terms, lack the facilities required for a British Grand Prix. Hopefully the current negotiations with the Welsh Assembly will reach a satisfactory conclusion. It is hard to think that they would want to be responsible for Cardiff losing such a prestigious event and one that brings considerable financial benefit to the city.

[Paulco]

BYDGOSZCZ and Leszno don't even start to compare with either Torun or Gorzow or even Gorican ... but even those venues, magnificent though they undoubtedly are in speedway terms, lack the facilities required for a British Grand Prix. Hopefully the current negotiations with the Welsh Assembly will reach a satisfactory conclusion. It is hard to think that they would want to be responsible for Cardiff losing such a prestigious event and one that brings considerable financial benefit to the city.

Maybe so , but i was thinking more of the British GP as a speedway spectacle rather than an event held in a stadium as wonderful as the Millennium stadium .

While the British GP is the jewel in the GP circuit facilities wise , as a speedway spectacle - it's right up there with the Cumberland Classic .

[Shadders]

Maybe so , but i was thinking more of the British GP as a speedway spectacle rather than an event held in a stadium as wonderful as the Millennium stadium .

While the British GP is the jewel in the GP circuit facilities wise , as a speedway spectacle - it's right up there with the Cumberland Classic .

I compare the Cardiff GP to the Monaco F1 GP... The racing very rarely lives up to expectations, but as a must be at event it's pretty hard to beat!... If finances and work commitments permit I can't see any way that I'd ever want to miss a Cardiff GP weekend.

Edited June 28, 2011 by Shadders

[crumpiefan]

i'd like to think that the quality of the track can be fixed in time,the first few times i went it seemed to really cut

up and more recently it was smoother but with less racing lines.

reproducing the whole atmosphere of cardiff would be a lot harder.

[DSC67]

Cardiff is all about the atmosphere , which is brilliant from early morning till late at night . The whole weekend is the highlight of any speedway fan's year .

The Pairs at Somerset is fantastic , the next day you have the Cardiff experience ( if only it had a proper speedway track ) , and then if only Newport could run a league match instead of that god-awful Welsh Open - the weekend would be perfect .

Newport used to run a league match on the Fri night before the P/L pairs moved to Somerset on the eve of the G/P

[jimmy jimmy]

From what I've seen in the artists impression the new Manchester track will be more of a Leicester/Newcastle shape than Hyde Road which for what I've seen in photos was more like the Sheffield/Peterborough in shape although slightly longer I'd imagine

The track is being designed by Chris Morton, who has a pretty good knowledge of Hyde Road. He wants it to be a similar shape with multiple racing lines, but about 25 yards shorter due to space constraints.

[Paulco]

Newport used to run a league match on the Fri night before the P/L pairs moved to Somerset on the eve of the G/P

Yes i know , it was always against us .

 

I compare the Cardiff GP to the Monaco F1 GP... The racing very rarely lives up to expectations, but as a must be at event it's pretty hard to beat!... If finances and work commitments permit I can't see any way that I'd ever want to miss a Cardiff GP weekend.

Well thought of Shadders . That comparison is spot on .

[penchev]

5 years the Pairs has now been at Somerset , and no matter what the British weather throws at it - it has never disappointed . It's a far superior meeting entertainment wise than the British GP .

 

Take the pairs to Newport for a change, somerset have had it for 5 years let someone else host it.

 

Newport only 15 mins on the train from cardiff.

[barrow boy]

Maybe so , but i was thinking more of the British GP as a speedway spectacle rather than an event held in a stadium as wonderful as the Millennium stadium .

While the British GP is the jewel in the GP circuit facilities wise , as a speedway spectacle - it's right up there with the Cumberland Classic .

The thing is. Not all of the other 10 GPs make money so it is down to the 40/50k that turn up at Cardiff to more than balance the books. Yes it would be nice to see better racing but at the end of the day it is the best spectacle and it is the one that keeps the GP series afloat.

[foreverblue]

Probably the best gp i have been to was at Bradford,great race track,stadium etc after that it was at Coventry,although good,racing was ok,atmosphere was good and stadium is ok but i think we have moved on now and i don't think any stadium is capable of re creating the atmosphere and overall experience of Cardiff,there have been many great races at Cardiff and it has to stay there for the good of the sport,if it went elsewhere the attendance would be nowhere near what it is now.

[keef]

The Cardiff Millennium is the best place for it, plus big profits for Greggs the bakers. But they should ban all pissed-up Poles/Dudley fans . Caused a lot of annoyance to decent people at the top of bends 3/4,the cheaper seats, about 20 by us who decided to move seats(we stayed put). Luckily the police moved in when they did to prevent a large-scale scrap. Was more like being in a footie crowd. The gate would probably drop by about 8,000 though Attendance of 43,650 this year, and they have held prices for a few years, unlike the Elite League clubs. Don't think the number of Brits increases year-on-year, but certainly the number of Poles has. The vast majority are just out for a good time(same as the Brits),noisy, good-natured, just a very small number that are nuisances, and feel they have to keep walking up and down the stand to refuel every half-hour, spilling booze and clambering over people. Don't know where the stewards were? The stadium was a lot quieter this year, as the Brits and passionate Poles didn't have a semi-finalist to cheer. They were gutted when Gollob missed-out. I saw one in tears

Good idea to have the meeting earlier as a couple of thousand fans can now catch trains. Must have been a couple of hundred getting off at Swindon, with the inevitable"We Hate Oxford" chants from a few. Together with 8 coaches from the area. I think there were more Robins fans at Cardiff than there are at Blunsdon at present. Saw banners I've never seen at The Abbey. Very well-organised by Arriva.

Edited June 29, 2011 by keef

[racers and royals]

The thing is. Not all of the other 10 GPs make money so it is down to the 40/50k that turn up at Cardiff to more than balance the books. Yes it would be nice to see better racing but at the end of the day it is the best spectacle and it is the one that keeps the GP series afloat.

I think you will find that ALL the GP rounds make money for BSI/IMG-the rounds they don`t promote themselves they get a fat fee off the host promoter

[foreverblue]

The Cardiff Millennium is the best place for it, plus big profits for Greggs the bakers. But they should ban all pissed-up Poles/Dudley fans . Caused a lot of annoyance to decent people at the top of bends 3/4,the cheaper seats, about 20 by us who decided to move seats(we stayed put). Luckily the police moved in when they did to prevent a large-scale scrap. Was more like being in a footie crowd. The gate would probably drop by about 8,000 though Attendance of 43,650 this year, and they have held prices for a few years, unlike the Elite League clubs. Don't think the number of Brits increases year-on-year, but certainly the number of Poles has. The vast majority are just out for a good time(same as the Brits),noisy, good-natured, just a very small number that are nuisances, and feel they have to keep walking up and down the stand to refuel every half-hour, spilling booze and clambering over people. Don't know where the stewards were? The stadium was a lot quieter this year, as the Brits and passionate Poles didn't have a semi-finalist to cheer. They were gutted when Gollob missed-out. I saw one in tears

Good idea to have the meeting earlier as a couple of thousand fans can now catch trains. Must have been a couple of hundred getting off at Swindon, with the inevitable"We Hate Oxford" chants from a few. Together with 8 coaches from the area. I think there were more Robins fans at Cardiff than there are at Blunsdon at present. Saw banners I've never seen at The Abbey. Very well-organised by Arriva.

We wre sitting lower tier 3rd bend and there was a scuffle with some fans,no idea what it was about but a couple of them got thrown out,the poles seem to leave when Gollob got knocked out.