Leigh Adams Interview

[IainB]

Watch/Listen to this:

 

[Waspman]

Thanks for posting this good video

[The White Knight]

Terrific watch. Very moving. Most inspiring.

Thanks for posting IainB.

[ch958]

50 minutes ago, The White Knight said:

Terrific watch. Very moving. Most inspiring.

Thanks for posting IainB.

I would argue he was the best rider never to be World Champ, along with maybe Jessup

[IainB]

16 minutes ago, ch958 said:

I would argue he was the best rider never to be World Champ, along with maybe Jessup

Add in Emil and TK... it's a long standing debate. 

You could argue (and I am) that Leigh Adams was a better ambassador for Speedway than the current 5 x World Champion!

[The White Knight]

1 hour ago, IainB said:

Add in Emil and TK... it's a long standing debate. 

You could argue (and I am) that Leigh Adams was a better ambassador for Speedway than the current 5 x World Champion!

I wouldn't argue with that. Bartosz Zmarzlik is a great rider, but crucially, does little to help Speedway outside of Poland. Publicity, Marketing etc.

[GiveusaB]

13 hours ago, ch958 said:

I would argue he was the best rider never to be World Champ, along with maybe Jessup

That would be an interesting topic! I'll add Kenny Carter to that list!

Loved watching Leigh Adams!

[GiveusaB]

11 hours ago, The White Knight said:

I wouldn't argue with that. Bartosz Zmarzlik is a great rider, but crucially, does little to help Speedway outside of Poland. Publicity, Marketing etc.

Probably why he's so good ! just focusses on what he does best and doesn't get involved with outside influences/distractions....rightly/wrongly....

I have no opinion/judgement on that.

 

[IainB]

2 hours ago, GiveusaB said:

Probably why he's so good ! just focusses on what he does best and doesn't get involved with outside influences/distractions....rightly/wrongly....

I have no opinion/judgement on that.

 

Nobody is doubting his ability on a Speedway bike... it's just as a 5 x World Champion he must be one of the worst ambassador's for Speedway ever, generally won't leave Poland, doesn't have the greatest command of the English (world) language etc.

You have to wonder how many titles Adams could have won if he was in the same circumstances as Zmarzlik i.e. not having to do 100+ meetings a year to make it pay, no Tony Rickardsson, Jason Crump & Nicki Pedersen at the top of their games, a high proportion of GP's run in his home country.

Edit:

Having said that if you look at Adams GP record it's not exactly littered with medals, a single Silver (2007) and one Bronze (2005)... it took him 6 years and 42 GP's until he finally won a GP. During his peak years 2000-2008 (?) he was headed by Tony Rickardsson, Nicki Pedersen, Jason Crump, Greg Hancock, Andreas Jonsson, Tomasz Gollob, Hans Andersen, Marl Loram, Billy Hamill & Ryan Sullivan... a mere 19 World Championships between them!!

Pick the bones out of that!

Edited March 13 by IainB

[Hodgy]

23 hours ago, The White Knight said:

I wouldn't argue with that. Bartosz Zmarzlik is a great rider, but crucially, does little to help Speedway outside of Poland. Publicity, Marketing etc.

Why should he? He doesn’t ride in the UK. He’s a super star in Poland. His country. What exactly would you like him to do?

[IainB]

13 minutes ago, Hodgy said:

Why should he? He doesn’t ride in the UK. He’s a super star in Poland. His country. What exactly would you like him to do?

As the rider of his era I'd like to see him learn English and do more meetings outside of Poland to promote the sport internationally or there'll only be Speedway left in Poland. World Champions in the past have generally had a responsibility to promote the sport through their position. You don't have to commit to a league, just show up once in a while in various open meetings across the world. 

[The White Knight]

28 minutes ago, Hodgy said:

Why should he? He doesn’t ride in the UK. He’s a super star in Poland. His country. What exactly would you like him to do?

To answer your question, read IainB's post above. He is spot on.

[Hodgy]

9 minutes ago, IainB said:

As the rider of his era I'd like to see him learn English and do more meetings outside of Poland to promote the sport internationally or there'll only be Speedway left in Poland. World Champions in the past have generally had a responsibility to promote the sport through their position. You don't have to commit to a league, just show up once in a while in various open meetings across the world. 

That’s not his job or responsibility. He’s riding in the biggest, best paid league in the Speedway World. Why would he travel to other countries for peanuts. He owes nothing. We no longer have any entrepreneurs to entice him for any reason. It’s a promoters job to promote. His English is understandable. I’m sure he’s very happy what he’s doing. 

[Hodgy]

17 minutes ago, The White Knight said:

To answer your question, read IainB's post above. He is spot on.

What was the last meeting you attended? 

[Hodgy]

44 minutes ago, IainB said:

As the rider of his era I'd like to see him learn English and do more meetings outside of Poland to promote the sport internationally or there'll only be Speedway left in Poland. World Champions in the past have generally had a responsibility to promote the sport through their position. You don't have to commit to a league, just show up once in a while in various open meetings across the world. 

PS - great interview with Leigh by the way. What strong character. 

[The White Knight]

16 hours ago, Hodgy said:

What was the last meeting you attended? 

I am unable to attend these days. Sorry about that.

[Pinny]

Love Adams, brilliant rider in league speedway. Stylish as they come.

However, calls of him being the best rider to not win a world title are a bit off. He really never looked like winning one and was in the GPs for a long time.

[IainB]

58 minutes ago, Pinny said:

Love Adams, brilliant rider in league speedway. Stylish as they come.

However, calls of him being the best rider to not win a world title are a bit off. He really never looked like winning one and was in the GPs for a long time.

Having looked at his record I tend to agree with you. When he was at his very best, there were few better, was he at that absolute top top level often enough? Probably not for me

[Pinny]

1 hour ago, IainB said:

Having looked at his record I tend to agree with you. When he was at his very best, there were few better, was he at that absolute top top level often enough? Probably not for me

I genuinely thought that he would of been well suited to the new system when it first came in in the mid 00's . From memory, I think he got a runners up medal the year Pedersen won it in 07 or 08. But think Pedersen was streets ahead of the rest that season.

As said, just as good as Crump in the leagues for me but when it came to GP's, he wasn't in the Elite class. Had he stuck around longer before retiring (think he was well under 40 when he called it a day) he could well of gone on to do well in the GP's , once Pedersen and Crump weren't dominating. Look at Hancock, OK he won his first title amongst great company but his last 3 titles were won when the likes of Crump and Pedersen were fading and the top end of the series was nowhere near as strong as it once was. 

Be a toss up between Crump and Adams for best EL rider ever though.

[E I Addio]

1 hour ago, IainB said:

Having looked at his record I tend to agree with you. When he was at his very best, there were few better, was he at that absolute top top level often enough? Probably not for me

 Fair comment. He was one of speedways great stylists, a great team rider as team riders go in the modern era, totally focussed, and machines were always immaculate. In fact one could say he had all. That is all except possibly the most important quality of all and that is the killer instinct. Perhaps he was just a little too much of a fair rider, too much of a sportsman, to have the absolute hunger and will to win. Maybe he would have won the top prize if he had been a little more of a hard man, but if he had been harder he probably wouldn’t have been held in the high esteem we all seem to hold him in.