Ipswich Tru7 Group Witches team manager Paul Hurry looks forward to facing Belle Vue icons Brady Kurtz and Dan Bewley on a fair Foxhall track after Thursday’s clash was postponed.
Despite on-and-off showers during the day, Witches had been hopeful of staging the Rowe Motor Oil Premiership contest. But these hopes were dashed by a late shower that struck Foxhall just 20 minutes before the scheduled 7.30pm start.
Hurry backed the decision to postpone the fixture to a date to be confirmed, ensuring Witches get the chance to take on a strong Belle Vue side, led by Speedway GP duo Kurtz and Bewley, on a better racetrack.
He said: “Racing them in poor conditions could have backfired on us. The track could have levelled the playing field, and we wouldn’t have had our home-track advantage.
“In saying that, when you have Dan and Brady turning up, you want a decent racetrack to entertain the crowd, so we can see them at their best.
“When it’s a sloppy track like that, you only need one rider to get out of the start and fill everyone in, and you don’t see the true Brady or Dan. Let’s hope it’s a fair playing field next time.”
Despite the Foxhall track staff’s hard work, they were unable to rescue the racing surface. Hurry was gutted to see the action halted by a last-minute shower. He added: “It was a bit of a shame. As the riders went to get changed, it wasn’t looking too bad. It was wet. Before the last storm, it was on the borderline. That’s when I went and spoke to referee Simon Humphrey-Kennett and said, ‘If it rains again, we could have a problem.’ That’s what happened.
“We had let the crowd in, and we tried to the end to get the meeting on. They tried to scrape the material off, but it was too wet. As soon as (track curator) Bob (Ellis) put the blade down, the sludge came out either side. There was no hope of getting it off the track.”
All tickets for Thursday’s meeting, purchased online or at turnstiles, can be used at one of the next three Witches home matches or at the re-arranged fixture.
The Witches are next in Rowe Motor Oil Premiership action away to King’s Lynn on Monday.