BANK HOLIDAY MONDAY PREVIEW

NORTHAMPTON go into a packed programme of racing with two matches in one day as they kick off their ROWE Motor Oil Premiership league campaign.

Bank Holiday Monday gets underway for the Foxes in Manchester with a visit to the National Speedway Stadium to face Belle Vue, with a midday start time.

From there it’s a trip back south to the East Midlands to take on Leicester at the Hydroscand Arena, Beaumont Park, with that match starting at 7.30pm.

It’s a tough schedule on man and machine which sees the Foxes face two sides who are both notoriously strong on their home circuits.

Belle Vue are led by World No.2 Brady Kurtz and World No.3 Dan Bewley, whilst Leicester are built with a more solid all-round look, with Australian racer Ryan Douglas at No.1.

The Foxes have suffered a setback with the news that Danish star Niels-Kristian Iversen, who was due to join up with the team for the first time on Monday, will be unable to take his place.

Medical checks last week resulted in Iversen being advised not to fly for the time being, which rules him out of the meetings.

Due to the fact that he has made a racing comeback elsewhere in Europe, the Foxes are restricted in their choice of replacement, and they must use guests with an average of up to 75 per cent of that of Iversen.

At Belle Vue, they have selected Jye Etheridge – who performed well for Sheffield on an early-season visit to Manchester – whilst at Leicester the guest will be Justin Sedgmen, who rode for the Lions in 2023.

Belle Vue are also forced into a change as Peter Kildemand suffered a broken collarbone in a crash at Edinburgh on Friday.

Leon Flint has been booked to guest for the Aces, in a meeting which will see Foxes No.1 Jaimon Lidsey make his first return to Manchester, having previously spent his entire UK career with Belle Vue.

Leicester are at full strength for the evening meeting with Northamptonshire-based Dan Gilkes making his first appearance of the season after injury – and whilst the Lions are strong at home, Foxes manager Chris Adams and Matej Zagar were involved in a shock away win there with Birmingham last year.

Adams said: “Obviously it’s another blow not having Niels for the Bank Holiday clashes. He missed Thursday with the expectation that his medical checks would be okay, but although we can see his injury is healing enough to enable him to ride, the doctors’ advice is still no flying.

“While the obvious solution is to drive to the UK, the logistical side of it all is just near impossible.

“We as a club at Northampton wish Niels a speedy recovery and hope to see him return to the UK very soon. While it’s frustrating in having to use a reduced facility to allow him to return at any given moment, I’m sure everyone would agree that his health must come first.

“I shall be monitoring the situation very closely over the next seven days, as I also need to look at what’s best for the club going forward. Hopefully these difficult times we face will pass soon.”

Both of Monday’s meetings will be live streamed by the home clubs – passes for Belle Vue are available from https://www.bvtv.live/, whilst for Leicester the link is https://www.leicesterlionstv.com/ .

Meanwhile the Foxes are back at home on Thursday (May 7) when they face King’s Lynn in a match which brings Grand Prix star Max Fricke and British speedway legend Chris Harris to the Shaleway.

Tickets for the meeting are now on sale and with grandstand demand likely to be high once again, supporters are urged to book early from https://northampton-speedway.com/tickets-hospitality .

BELLE VUE: Brady Kurtz, Norick Blodorn, Leon Flint, Zach Cook, Dan Bewley, Tate Zischke, Will Cairns.

NORTHAMPTON: Jaimon Lidsey, Troy Batchelor, Matej Zagar, Jye Etheridge, Nicolai Klindt, Kye Thomson, Luke Harrison.

LEICESTER: Ryan Douglas, Dan Thompson, Nick Morris, Kyle Howarth, Sam Masters, Drew Kemp, Dan Gilkes.

NORTHAMPTON: Jaimon Lidsey, Troy Batchelor, Matej Zagar, Justin Sedgmen, Nicolai Klindt, Kye Thomson, Luke Harrison.