MEETING SPONSOR
Doug Wade Insurance
SCORECARD
IPSWICH 54: Emil Sayfutdinov 9+2, Danny King © 10+1, Adam Ellis 7, Tom Brennan 11+1, Jason Doyle 8+1, Dan Thompson 5+1, Jordan Jenkins (RS) 4+2. Team Manager: Ritchie Hawkins
LEICESTER 36: Max Fricke © 16+1, Luke Becker R/R, Ryan Douglas 9+1, Kyle Howarth 4+1, Sam Masters 3, Drew Kemp 3+1, Joe Thompson (RS) 1. Team Manager: Stewart Dickson
REFEREE: W. Jarvis
ROWE MOTOR OIL PREMIERSHIP TABLE
| Team | Meetings | Points |
| Ipswich | 12 | 23 |
| Sheffield | 12 | 22 |
| Belle Vue | 12 | 19 |
| Leicester | 12 | 16 |
| King’s Lynn | 13 | 11 |
| Oxford | 12 | 6 |
| Birmingham | 11 | 4 |
THE REPORT
The Ipswich ‘Tru7 Group’ Witches registered a dominant win over the Leicester Lions on Monday night at Foxhall in the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership.
For the first time in over a month the hosts had all seven riders available to them whilst the Lions were operating rider replacement for the injured Luke Becker. The home team raced into a big lead early on in the tie and never looked back as they returned to the top of the table in front of their supporters and the TNT Sports cameras. Tom Brennan top scored with 11+1.
Emil Sayfutdinov and Danny King flew from the start in heat one and rode to a maximum and that was followed in heat two by another courtesy of the returning Dan Thompson and Jordan Jenkins. Adam Ellis won heat three and he was joined at the front by partner Brennan who forced his way past Ryan Douglas at the end of the first lap for another 5-1. Jason Doyle was also making his return to Foxhall, and he picked up three points in heat four as Ipswich rode to a 4-2 to put them in a commanding 19-5 lead.
Brennan swooped around the first bend to lead and take the chequered flag in heat five with Ellis riding smartly to work his way into third for a fifth heat advantage to the hosts. Another 5-1 followed in heat six as the Lions had no answer to King and Sayfutdinov. Doyle won heat seven comfortably in the first 3-3 of the evening and Max Fricke got the first race win of the night for the visitors in heat eight but both King and Jenkins passed Joe Thompson to prevent a heat advantage making it 34-14.
Fricke was back out in heat nine as a tactical substitute and duly won but a great move at the end of the first lap from Ellis saw him squeeze past Sam Masters into second to limit the visitors to a 2-4 as Brennan slid off at the back. King raced to victory in heat 10 but the action was all behind him with Sayfutdinov left at the back. However, the Witches number remained patient to first come under Douglas before blasting around Kyle Howarth on the last bend of the race to secure a 5-1. Leicester responded with their first maximum of the night in heat 11 and another followed in heat 12 to leave the score 43-29.
Fricke won a shared heat 13 but in heat 14 Brennan and Dan Thompson teamed up for a 5-1. Brennan rode excellently to muscle his way to the front and stay there to win a shared heat 15 as Ipswich went back to the summit of the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership with an impressive display.
RITCHIE HAWKINS REACTION
Ipswich ‘Tru7 Group’ Witches team manager Ritchie Hawkins reflects on Monday’s win over Leicester…
“I am absolutely delighted to get the win in the fashion we did. I have to admit I was surprised we won so comfortably considering half of the boys are riding injured. That leaves you with doubts in your mind over how they are going to perform but having that one to seven back together certainly gave the boys a spark and they seemed to gel. There is something special about them when they are all together even under the circumstances where in reality they are nowhere near 100% fit and could be doing with more time off.
“We looked a different outfit to the last month and were straight back at it with a big, fast start. We needed it because we knew that the boys would struggle later on to deal with the injuries against a very good Leicester side who do very well at Foxhall. The strong start was extra important and made a massive difference.
“We have spoken a lot about Jason and know the injury he has but the Grand Prix at the weekend gave him a boost. We didn’t know how he would go on a tighter circuit like Ipswich, and he was clearly in pain and not fully fit but with him at the top and Danny as our captain riding injured, the younger guys like Dan and Jordan follow that and want to be like them and part of the team. They put everything into it. Jason will get fitter as time goes on and he has a week off now to recover more and that will do him the world of good.
“Danny has the sort of injury where if he knocks it, it flares up and will settle down after a few days. Hitting it on Saturday, he could have done with another day or two before returning to racing, but he is experienced around Ipswich and to only drop one point was superb and made the world of difference to the result.
“Both reserves did well and were riding through the pain barrier. Dan has had a lot of time off the bike and isn’t race-fit or 100% with his hand but I thought he rode really well. Jordan needs some recovery after his crashes and if we could have found a suitable guest, he would have taken a week off to recover but knowing we couldn’t spurred him on to race and he did a superb job.
“A lot of the boys have got a quiet week which is great for us as a team before Belle Vue next Monday. We know how good we can be if we can keep everyone fit and avoid any more injuries and tonight looked bright for the future.
“It would be great to finish top of the table although you don’t gain anything from it which is something that needs to be looked at and changed. We want to be the best team all season and to get to the halfway point with the injury troubles is very promising and pleasing. We are in a good place where I can see the progression and I would have taken this at the start of the season, without the injuries. Where I think we are at as a side I think we can grow going into the play-offs.”
DOUG WADE RIDER OF THE NIGHT
Sayfutdinov won the award, dropping just one point to an opponent and producing the ride of the night in heat 10.
WHAT IT MEANS
Ipswich add two points to their tally and move back to the top of the table whilst Leicester stay fourth.
NEXT FIXTURE
The Ipswich ‘Tru7 Group’ Witches travel to the National Speedway Stadium to take on the Belle Vue Aces on Monday 30th June in the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership. Tickets can be purchased on the gate and in advance here.
Press Officer at Ipswich Speedway