Little Thumper Posted October 14, 2016 Report Share Posted October 14, 2016 NL Speedway @NLSpeedway 3h3 hours ago Ben @hopwoodracing is in dispute with Stoke and has been sacked, which also stops him riding as a guest for Cradley in the NLKOC. Why would it stop him riding for Cradley? If he is self-employed, he can ride for whoever offers him work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Posted October 14, 2016 Report Share Posted October 14, 2016 Why would it stop him riding for Cradley? If he is self-employed, he can ride for whoever offers him work. To guest, a rider has to be in a declared 1-7 of a NL team. If Hopwood has been sacked then he's ineligible, if suspended I've no idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Islander15 Posted October 14, 2016 Report Share Posted October 14, 2016 To guest, a rider has to be in a declared 1-7 of a NL team. If Hopwood has been sacked then he's ineligible, if suspended I've no idea. The BSPA have ruled that he's ineligible because despite him being 'suspended' by Stoke he's still in their declaration as its past the deadline to make any team changes. However Stoke have a meeting on Saturday so the BSPA have ruled that he cannot guest for another team when it clashes with his actual club having a meeting, when technically he's still in their side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Little Thumper Posted October 15, 2016 Report Share Posted October 15, 2016 To guest, a rider has to be in a declared 1-7 of a NL team. If Hopwood has been sacked then he's ineligible, if suspended I've no idea. Do we have reason to believe that he is "employed" by Stoke Speedway. If he is not an employee, then clearly he cannot be "sacked". Using the information provided by contributors on another thread, Ben would appear to be self-employed and therefore is free and able to offer his professional services to any party which wishes to use them. It seems unlikely that rules and regulations drafted by the BSPA or indeed any other employers' organization would be found to trump the protections provided by UK and EU employment legislation. Do speedway riders not have some kind of representative or body which stands up for their rights and ensures that they are treated fairly and in accordance with the prevailing legislation? Some of the rules and regulations in speedway are reminiscent of those that you might encounter in a Banana Republic. Just my opinion, obviously. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
screm Posted October 15, 2016 Report Share Posted October 15, 2016 Hopwood`s statement. https://twitter.com/hopwoodracing?lang=en-gb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Little Thumper Posted October 15, 2016 Report Share Posted October 15, 2016 (edited) Hopwood`s statement. https://twitter.com/hopwoodracing?lang=en-gb screm, that is very helpful, thank you. Whilst Ben Hopwood's clarification does not provide much further detail, it is informative in that he states, "stoke speedway have not informed me of an official suspension" and "as a result of intermittent payment issues from the club". Should there be no evidence that correct and reasonable procedures have been followed and as a result of this failure the rider in question has been prevented from pursuing their occupation, then this would be an issue. The intermittent payment matter is rather worrying and it would be interesting to know if it is just a single rider who is experiencing difficulties in this area which seems highly unlikely or whether several riders are in the same position. It will be interesting to hear further details from a representative of Stoke Speedway. Edited October 16, 2016 by Little Thumper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Little Thumper Posted October 16, 2016 Report Share Posted October 16, 2016 I was in the pits at Stoke on 14th May, this being the day that Ben Hopwood came in to help the struggling Stoke side. Ben was in the pits getting his bike ready for the battle against Belle Vue and Malcolm Vasey came rushing in and shook Ben's hand enthusiastically and thanked him for coming in to bolster the team. As I remember, Ben's reply was that he was just grateful to be riding anywhere! I think Ben has done his best for the team over the past few months and it seems rather sad that a relationship that looked so promising at the outset appears to have ended in acrimony and dispute. I hope that all parties involved are able to find an acceptable solution. Be careful out there, it's a dangerous world. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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