2025 Team Predictions

[arnieg]

8 hours ago, szkocjasid said:

I would say Speedway already has a system to stop the same clubs finishing bottom every year, it's called the points limit. This should mean teams start equal each year & the richest club can't sign all the best riders.

I see no reason why the bottom clubs should get an extra bonus of first pick of "rising stars"

Those clubs are often bottom for systemic reasons that apply year after year. If having first pick of rising stars gives (say) Birmingham or King's Lynn a little extra incentive to stay in a league where they can't compete financially and their aspirations are generally limited to avoiding the wooden spoon then I'm all for it.

[Gambo95]

3 hours ago, Phil The Ace said:

He only moved out because he achieved an average over 4, he’s now back

under 4 so we are all assuming he will fit the criteria again

What is the age limit for rising stars?

I thought it was under 23 at the start of the season (from 24 last season) and is Jordan not 23?

[Arch Stanton]

3 minutes ago, Gambo95 said:

What is the age limit for rising stars?

I thought it was under 23 at the start of the season (from 24 last season) and is Jordan not 23?

It was 23 or under from January 1st according to this/last season’s rules. We’ll have to wait and see what the criteria is for the 2025 season. 

[Arch Stanton]

2 hours ago, arnieg said:

Those clubs are often bottom for systemic reasons that apply year after year. If having first pick of rising stars gives (say) Birmingham or King's Lynn a little extra incentive to stay in a league where they can't compete financially and their aspirations are generally limited to avoiding the wooden spoon then I'm all for it.

But it’s competition. Where do you stop trying to manufacture performance/results by throwing in a “helping hand” to clubs?  If you continue to do that then you slowly take away the competitive nature of the competition itself. It’s a brand new season, the clubs that finished towards the bottom now have equal opportunity to build competitive teams for next year to compete better. They shouldn’t be artificially helped in my opinion. 

[arnieg]

1 hour ago, Arch Stanton said:

But it’s competition. Where do you stop trying to manufacture performance/results by throwing in a “helping hand” to clubs?  If you continue to do that then you slowly take away the competitive nature of the competition itself. It’s a brand new season, the clubs that finished towards the bottom now have equal opportunity to build competitive teams for next year to compete better. They shouldn’t be artificially helped in my opinion. 

Even football by financial play regulations does this. At the start of the new season all teams do NOT have equal opportunites - some have bigger crowds, better sponsorship, more accommodating landlords, better track access etc. It is NEVER a level playing field.

And if you'd rather clubs go out of business because they can't compete - just remember they rarely come back.

[Wolfie456]

I'd hold fire on predictions as might not be a premiership if brummies not come to tapes.

[ShanoXtra]

6 minutes ago, arnieg said:

Even football by financial play regulations does this. At the start of the new season all teams do NOT have equal opportunites - some have bigger crowds, better sponsorship, more accommodating landlords, better track access etc. It is NEVER a level playing field.

And if you'd rather clubs go out of business because they can't compete - just remember they rarely come back.

Are the going out of business because they can’t compete though? Or is it the fact Birmingham clearly don’t have a bigger fan base than say the witches. If Birmingham won the league last year, do you think that will double / triple, their crowds this year? Probably ask people in Birmingham what speedway is and they won’t know. That’s the problem, nothing about being competitive. The sport doesn’t have any promotion be it in their own cities or national TV. Not even all speedway fans know about BSN or local clubs having live streams.  

[Phil The Ace]

55 minutes ago, Wolfie456 said:

I'd hold fire on predictions as might not be a premiership if brummies not come to tapes.

We have had 6 before. So guessing we can do 6 teams again. Although not ideal 

[FishersGate]

2 hours ago, Phil The Ace said:

We have had 6 before. So guessing we can do 6 teams again. Although not ideal 

6 teams make the league even more embarrassing.  Needs 8 ideally. Still always going to advocate for one big league. Sod the GP riders and promote our own kids. 

[cowboy cookie returns?]

51 minutes ago, FishersGate said:

6 teams make the league even more embarrassing.  Needs 8 ideally. Still always going to advocate for one big league. Sod the GP riders and promote our own kids. 

One big league worked in the 90s but it wouldn’t work now. There aren’t enough riders to staff all the teams & even if they could somehow find it the strength would be lower than the current championship & the standard of racing would be awful because of the gulf in rider standard. All that while trying to charge the same if not more than current championship admission at least.
 

I can’t see the premiership clubs lowering the cost of admission enough to reflect the lower standard. 
 

it would lead to decreasing attendances all over & a race to the bottom to see which club is the last standing.

[arnieg]

1 hour ago, cowboy cookie returns? said:

One big league worked in the 90s but it wouldn’t work now. 

No it didn't that's why it only lasted 2 years.

[Daniel Smith]

Think it's clear who the bottom 2 are next season. Birmingham saying they're skint & King's Lynn not looking for a big hitter, maybe they should just look forward to 2026 already. 

[Youhave2minutes]

1 hour ago, Daniel Smith said:

Think it's clear who the bottom 2 are next season. Birmingham saying they're skint & King's Lynn not looking for a big hitter, maybe they should just look forward to 2026 already. 

Well said Daniel. Absolutely True. A team needs 2 big hitters end of.

[Gavan]

You need to have 2 big hitters who will get you around 13 points each a meeting 

The best 3 teams in the league had Doyle and Emil… Kurtz and Bewley and Holder and Tai….

Those 6 riders aren’t going to get any better but they will get you what you need from them 

Kings Lynn pack their side with riders who aren’t number ones and aren’t going to get any better like Lawson NKI Basso …. Plenty of those riders about like Craig Cook and Danny King and even Chris Harris …. Theses guys will get you 6-7 a meeting but will occasionally get you 10 and sometimes 5…. You can’t rely on a 1-7 of riders at that level it won’t work as the team with the big hitters will pack the rest of the team with improvers who at times will beat the ‘Lawson’ type of rider….. nobody would be shocked if Rew, Pickering or Ben Cook beat Lawson or King would they 

Two big hitters a solid third heat leader and then second strings who can get you 6 a meeting is the way to go 

Kings Lynn have a 1-5 of riders who will get on average 7 a meeting… some will get 10 and some 5…… that’s only around 42 points a meeting it’s not enough 

At Ipswich you knew Doyle and Emil would get minimum 25 at home …. King and Ellis usually 14 between them …. Leaves 3 riders to get 6 and we had Dan and Rew doing that all season 

[4BenMoran]

When are we going to start seeing some team announcements, or do we have to wait for the annual pi$$ up/AGMin Spain to be finished in November?  Every other country making riders as per usual just the usual dawdling around by British teams 

[Daniel Smith]

1 hour ago, 4BenMoran said:

When are we going to start seeing some team announcements, or do we have to wait for the annual pi$$ up/AGMin Spain to be finished in November?  Every other country making riders as per usual just the usual dawdling around by British teams 

We have to wait on rider's not signing or being signed in Poland & Sweden. 

[Youhave2minutes]

1 hour ago, 4BenMoran said:

When are we going to start seeing some team announcements, or do we have to wait for the annual pi$$ up/AGMin Spain to be finished in November?  Every other country making riders as per usual just the usual dawdling around by British teams 

The boffs have got to get a tan first

[FishersGate]

With GP lines up announced for next season does anybody reckon any current or ex GP riders will take the plunge to ride in Britian?

[1 valve]

On 10/4/2024 at 12:16 PM, Gavan said:

You need to have 2 big hitters who will get you around 13 points each a meeting 

The best 3 teams in the league had Doyle and Emil… Kurtz and Bewley and Holder and Tai….

Those 6 riders aren’t going to get any better but they will get you what you need from them 

Kings Lynn pack their side with riders who aren’t number ones and aren’t going to get any better like Lawson NKI Basso …. Plenty of those riders about like Craig Cook and Danny King and even Chris Harris …. Theses guys will get you 6-7 a meeting but will occasionally get you 10 and sometimes 5…. You can’t rely on a 1-7 of riders at that level it won’t work as the team with the big hitters will pack the rest of the team with improvers who at times will beat the ‘Lawson’ type of rider….. nobody would be shocked if Rew, Pickering or Ben Cook beat Lawson or King would they 

Two big hitters a solid third heat leader and then second strings who can get you 6 a meeting is the way to go 

Kings Lynn have a 1-5 of riders who will get on average 7 a meeting… some will get 10 and some 5…… that’s only around 42 points a meeting it’s not enough 

At Ipswich you knew Doyle and Emil would get minimum 25 at home …. King and Ellis usually 14 between them …. Leaves 3 riders to get 6 and we had Dan and Rew doing that all season 

If every team had two "big hitters" then the current "big hitters" would not be as successful simply because they would be beating each other. The three teams you refer two had a competitive advantage over most of the other teams this year, most of the time, so long as all of the big hitters remained fit. However, in the case of one or more being unavailable, as was the case then there was a scarcity of RR availability unlike for "middle order" riders. Thus there is an argument for a balanced approach across the team such as at Leicester, who finished second in the league, runners up in the play offs (to a great BV team) and actually managed aggregate wins in the league v BV, Sheffield and Ipswich.   
That all said, If every team did have two big hitters, heats 13 & 15 would be something to relish and would be great entertainment, Entertainment? now there's a concept for the promoters to consider creating more of!

[1 valve]

11 minutes ago, FishersGate said:

With GP lines up announced for next season does anybody reckon any current or ex GP riders will take the plunge to ride in Britian?

Do you mean in addition to those that current do ride here?