Newport Wasps to buzz no more

It's sad to hear another club has been consigned to the speedway scrapheap.

History is littered with teams that have come and gone and now Newport Wasps are the latest name added to the list.

They were already considering whether to run before the annual British Speedway Promoters’ Association conference in November, citing falling attendances as a major reason to review their sorry situation.

Having decided to continue, other factors occurred, not least their continuing feud with the BSPA over the average of Australian Todd Kurtz.

Newport claim as he was classed as a British rider in 2011 he would still qualify for the 2.5 per cent reduction on his average.

The BSPA disagree, and said Kurtz disqualified himself by recently riding in the Australian U21 championship.

The saga, along with other matters, led to the resignation of co-promoter Nick Mallett.

His dad Steve has now pulled the plug on the Welsh club.

Not only have we lost Newport, it means another free date in Comets’ diary and there is only so much X Factor I can take on a Saturday night.

Newport had put together a strong team and were strongly tipped as title contenders, but now all their riders are without jobs.

Sadly Mr Mallett decide to walk away without a suitable buyer for the club having been found in time to save Newport.

THERE have been surprising omissions from Premier League teams this year as promoters have either looked abroad or tried to fit in with team-building averages.

The likes of Carl Wilkinson and Ben Wilson have been left out in the cold and are hoping team places will crop up later in the year.

Another one of those riders is Jason King, who was left out by Newcastle after a disastrous 2011 where he never fully recovered from a leg injury.

Due to his problems, the 26-year-old managed just 11 appearances.

King, who always seems to be overshadowed by his brother Danny, who rides in the Elite League with Birmingham, has taken the decision to ride in the third tier with Scunthorpe in a bid to retain his form and confidence.

I hope it works out and that King and the other riders can find their way into Premier League teams before the end of the season.

TALKS are continuing over Belle Vue’s new stadium, and it is hoped building work can start in the summer.

Belle Vue have still got an eye on hosting the speedway World Cup in 2013 which would see Great Britain qualify automatically under the new rules.

Things slowly seem to be moving in the right direction and the management team at the Aces said it is not a matter of if but when.

But nothing is ever simple in speedway and I for one never believe anything until it actually happens.

MANY riders are making sure they do not miss out on Telford’s last ever ice meeting.

Phil Morris, whose last team was the Comets, has been tempted out of retirement one last time to have a tilt at the British Open Ice title.

Morris has been labelled as the best rider never to win the meeting after finishing on the rostrum twice.

There is no doubt he will be up for it and it would be a fitting end to his career if he did walk away with the title.