Who Would Ride And Win In The World Final Of The Nearly Men

[Joe Beevers]

Obviously open to debate but feel free to post your own line-up of a World Final of the best riders ever to have never won the World title and who you would have thought would of won this meeting. My list has been compiled not only from what I have seen but also a few statistics as well.

 

1 Leigh Adams

2 David Jessup

3 Igor Plechanov

4 Zenon Plech

5 Emil Sayfutdinov (Controversial - still more to come but looking the best rider in last few years along with Tai)

6 Jimmy Nilsen

7 Scott Autrey

8 Split Waterman

9 Kenny Carter

10 Jaroslaw Hampel

11 Billy Sanders

12 Shawn Moran

13 Bengt Jansson

14 Soren Sjosten

15 Bernt Persson

16 Tommy Knudsen

 

Reserves

17 Jack Parker

18 Soren Sjosten

 

Winner Leigh Adams 13 (after run off)

Second Zenon Plech 13

Third David Jessup 12

[Grand Central]

Third David Jessup 12

 

I assume that was four straight wins and engine failure while leading in the other.

[stratton]

Obviously open to debate but feel free to post your own line-up of a World Final of the best riders ever to have never won the World title and who you would have thought would of won this meeting. My list has been compiled not only from what I have seen but also a few statistics as well.

 

1 Leigh Adams

2 David Jessup

3 Igor Plechanov

4 Zenon Plech

5 Emil Sayfutdinov (Controversial - still more to come but looking the best rider in last few years along with Tai)

6 Jimmy Nilsen

7 Scott Autrey

8 Split Waterman

9 Kenny Carter

10 Jaroslaw Hampel

11 Billy Sanders

12 Shawn Moran

13 Bengt Jansson

14 Soren Sjosten

15 Bernt Persson

16 Tommy Knudsen

 

Reserves

17 Jack Parker

18 Soren Sjosten

 

Winner Leigh Adams 13 (after run off)

Second Zenon Plech 13

Third David Jessup 12

No Sigalos ( before injury)??surely you must of forgot. Edited August 22, 2015 by sidney

[lucifer sam]

Vic Duggan would win the meeting... if you had included him.

 

All the best

Rob

[stratton]

Obviously open to debate but feel free to post your own line-up of a World Final of the best riders ever to have never won the World title and who you would have thought would of won this meeting. My list has been compiled not only from what I have seen but also a few statistics as well.

 

1 Leigh Adams

2 David Jessup

3 Igor Plechanov

4 Zenon Plech

5 Emil Sayfutdinov (Controversial - still more to come but looking the best rider in last few years along with Tai)

6 Jimmy Nilsen

7 Scott Autrey

8 Split Waterman

9 Kenny Carter

10 Jaroslaw Hampel

11 Billy Sanders

12 Shawn Moran

13 Bengt Jansson

14 Soren Sjosten

15 Bernt Persson

16 Tommy Knudsen

 

Reserves

17 Jack Parker

18 Soren Sjosten

 

Winner Leigh Adams 13 (after run off)

Second Zenon Plech 13

Third David Jessup 12

I would of picked none of your top three Adams maybe to win out of your line up no Sigalos?Plech and Jessup i could not see them getting in the three.

[The White Knight]

I can't see Malcolm Simmons, Chris Morton or Les Collins on the List. They would be on mine.

[Guest]

I can't see Malcolm Simmons, Chris Morton or Les Collins on the List. They would be on mine.

 

What about Jack Milne, Eric Langton, Tommy Price?

[waiheke1]

 

What about Jack Milne, Eric Langton, Tommy Price?

Thought a speedway journalist of your repute would be aware that both price and Milne did win the world championship?

[HenryW]

I can't see Malcolm Simmons, Chris Morton or Les Collins on the List. They would be on mine.

As an Edinburgh fan who spent many years marvelling at lovely Les and his racing style, I'm not sure that he really belongs on a list like this. He raced in one World Final and whilst he came close to winning, it's not like he was someone that was expected to be a contender and he drifted from the top level fairly quickly.

 

Of the original list a lot of them are before my time so I'm not overly qualified to decide their merit on the list. However, someone like Autrey seems like an odd inclusion. He raced in two World Finals and made the rostrum once. Is he really someone that people remember as a great contender that never made champion? I wonder what puts him above someone like Ryan Sullivan?

[TonyMac]

Top four

 

1st Simmo

2nd Dave Jessup

3rd Tommy Knudsen

4th Benga Jansson

[Guest]

Thought a speedway journalist of your repute would be aware that both price and Milne did win the world championship?

 

An indication of how my interest in speedway is fast departing probably? Yes, of course I knew that both Jack Milne (1937) and Tommy Price (1949) were world champions.

Edited August 23, 2015 by Guest

[norbold]

It depends what you mean by 'nearly men'. There are a number of riders who never won the World Championship like Tom Farndon, Vic Huxley and Vic Duggan, but that's because they were at their peak when there was no World Championship, so they weren't really 'nearly' men.

 

Of those that were around and failed to win for one reason or another, I think maybe Aub Lawson and Gote Nordin should be in the final along with Jack Parker (not just at reserve). As to the result I think Igor Plechanov would be hard to beat.

[OveFundinFan]

Of those I saw from the early sixties through late seventies - I would say Jessup and Plechanov would be right there in the mix.

[customhouseregular]

If you are referring to riders who came second in a World Final you can't really include Emil. But, you have to include the Hammers... Simmons, Wally Green and Harrfeldt. Nearly men is a loose description if we are going to include riders who finished lower than second. Unless I am mistaken, Leigh Adams never made the top 3 in a World Final, so he could not win a World Final of the nearly men .

Sentiment says Sverre Harrfeldt would win but I suspect Igor Plechanov would take the honours.

[Wessex Wanderer]

Plechanov for me. Best rider who never won the World Championship I have seen. Would surely have won it if the finals had been rotated to East Europe in those days.

 

Before my time but just by reputation Jack Parker would replace at least half of those listed. Same for Vic Duggan. Although both won the Riders Championsip during the years when there was no World one. Of course they don't get so many mentions these days as there are not too many around who actually saw them ride. Even more so for the likes of Tom Farndon, Vic Huxley, Frank Arthur etc etc etc. I really miss the likes of Bob Spence who saw them all right from 1928 and was always a delight to talk to.

 

Good subject. I always enjoy these sort of threads.

[customhouseregular]

If you took every British rider who never became World Champion, but finished 2nd. or 3rd. in the World Championship, you would have a pretty good field for a Grand Prix.

I might go for John Louis to win that one .

[mickthemuppet]

Certainly Jack Parker who was the best rider in the 1930's and possibly the 1940's as well Not many riders were that good over such a long timespan.He was that good that the Golden helmet that he held for many times was known as "Parker's Pension"

 

Mind you it is difficult to make comparisms as people riding bicycles today can go a lot faster than speedway riders did in the 1930's

Edited August 23, 2015 by mickthemuppet

[norbold]

In my opinion Jack Parker was the best rider in the 1930's and possibly the 1940's as well Not many riders were that good over such a long timespan.He was that good that the Golden helmet that he held for many times was known as "Parker's Pension"

 

Mind you it is difficult to make comparisms as people riding bicycles today can go a lot faster than speedway riders did in the 1930's

There fixed for you.

[Sotonian]

Surely Brian Crutcher, 2nd in 1954, is a glaring omission too?

[waiheke1]

Although the OP hasn’t made it explicit, it seems the criteria for inclusion are non wolrd champions who either a) having finished on the podium or came close to winning the title without finishing on the poidium (e.g. Carter).

That criteria rules out a number of riders who appear on conventional “best ever not to win the title" lists, excluding the likes of Farndon, Duggan etc from no-worlrd championship eras and also the likes of Chris Morton, who was world class without ever producing the good son world final nights.

I’ll make three changes to the OPs list of 16 – bringing in Jack Parker, Denis Sigalos and Malcom Simmons for Scott Autrey, Sjosten and Bernt Persson.

 

To run through the field:

Leigh Adams: The sort of rider that had he not won a world title under the old format we would have said “would have been a world champ for

sure under a GP series.” Truly quality rider, perhaps doubt as to whether he was hard enough to win a one –off title

Jessup: His world final record of one silver doesn’t do him justice, famously missing out on possibly a world title (certainly a rostrum spoot) due tio

engine failure in 78, and again a podium spot in 81m due to engine failures. Bad luck – possibly not, more evidence that mechanical

preparation is needed to become world champ. Under a GP system he would have been a near certainty for the title in 1980, ao while

often derided as a “gating tart” I think he’s one of the leading contenders in this field

Plechanov: the only rider to be runner up two consecutive years without lifting the title. Well before my time, but clearly one of the class riders of

the field

Plech: If this meeting were to be held in Poland he would be one of the hot favourites, otherwise I could see only a lower table finish despite his

quality.

Emil: Unsure why the OP labels him a controversial inclusion. GP medalist as a teenager. Locked in a dramatic two way battle for the title a

couple of seasons later, only to be denied at least silver by injury. The most talented rider in the field

Nilsen: Managed a silver in the GP system. As well as being just off the podium in both eworld final and GP formats. You don’t achieve that

without being very very good, but not a rider I consider to be quite world champion quality.

Split Waterman: Like Plechanov before my time, but one of two double silver medalists in the field, has to be a favourite

Kenny Carter: Three world finals, at the half way mark was never lower than second. Of course what followed was an engine failure at wembley, THAT incident in 82, and a disappointing tail off in 83. Would have been a hot favourite in the 85 world final but for a broken leg in the final qualifying meeting. Probably second best rider in the world in 81-82, would have been a certyainty for minimum silver medal under a gP system in 82. Only rider in the field not to win a medal, but certainly one of the best riders in the field if he can avoid imploding after the interval.

Hampel: Like Jessup often unfairly derided as a gating tart. Like Adams, a rider who you would have thought ideally suited to GPs given his domestic record. Has an excellent GP record over the last few years, and would have been better if not for injury. If this was to be run over a GP format I’d tip him as a medalist, but in a world final basis I have my doubts.

Shaun Moran: One of my favourite riders of all time, quite capable of winning the thing or finishing last. Hiw world final record realy doesn’t do justice to his talent, his record in the inter-conitninental final – along with the BLRC arguably the two meetings with the strongest line ups in that era-is testament to that.

Malcolm Simmons: A top top rider, as his record in the world pairs indicates. That said, never THAT close to being a world champ, and under a GP format I’m not sure he would have even managed a silver. Well worthy of a place in this field though.

Billy sanders: Had an excellent record in world finals, really raising himself on the big night (with the exception of 84). But never got genuinely close to being world champ, one of the weaker riders in the field IMHO.

Tommy Knudsen: Scintillating third on debut as 1 year old testament to his talent, involved in one of the most famous Wembley races of all time with Penhall. though admittedly he would likely have missed out on a podium spot but for engine difficulties suffered by Carter/Gundersen/ Jessup.

Then of course was dnied a possible world title after THAT clash with Hans in 86. Career was sadly hampered by injuries. One of the most naturally talented riders in the field.

Dennis Sigalos: Included perhaps more on potential than actual achievements. Made only two finals, finishing third on debut in 82 would likely have finished off the podium but for the Penhall/KC clash) and disappointingly down the field in 83. However was one of the top three riders in the world in 82, 83 and at the time of his career ending injury in 84. Could well have been world champion but for that injury.

Bengt Jansson: world class record, denied a world title only by a lost run off against Fundin.

Soren Sjosten: very good world final record, without ever getting really close to being world champ:

Jack Parker: Well before my time, but as an Aces fan he was always talked about as the greatest never to win it.

 

Omissions (including those men tioned by others as possible):

Persson – the only rider omitted who missed out on a title by run off, but there's certainly an argument he shouldn’t have been on the podium, rather should have been excluded earlier in the meet for knocking Briggs off.

Soren Sjosten: very good world final record, without ever getting really close to being world champ:

Autrey: Two world finals, one podium finish, a quality rider who may have pushed for a medal in GPs in the late 70s.

Ward: His last two GPs seasons he has been set well placed for a medal before his seasons being prematurely ended. A huge natural talent, but not sure he has yet got close enough to a title to be considered a “nearly man”

Les Collins: Produced three world class pefromances (80 BLRC, 82 IC and world final) in his career, but was otherwise an international class rather than world class performer. Tbh would rate him behind the likes of Louis x2, Wigg, Tatum etc. even if he did get closer (one poor ride and bad luck with the carter crash) to being world champ than any of them.

Phil Crump: Could have been world champ in 75 under a GP system, albeit due to his superior machinery. A rider of his quality though ha da poor world final record.

Brian Crutcher: Managed one rostrum spot on his home track, given that all his world finals were at wembley (his home track for all bar one of those seasons), not convinced he warrants a spot ahead of any of those included.

 

My picks: Emil to win, Plechanov second, Split third. Jessup missing out due to engine problems, Carter leading at the interval only for disaster to hit in his fourth ride.

If you took every British rider who never became World Champion, but finished 2nd. or 3rd. in the World Championship, you would have a pretty good field for a Grand Prix.

I might go for John Louis to win that one .

 

surely Split Waterman to be the favourite in that one? I'll go a top three of Split, Jack Parker and Dave Jessup.