WARD, Darcy Stephen
DATE OF BIRTH: 4 May 1992, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
BRITISH CAREER: (2008) Boston; (2009) King’s Lynn; (2010-11) Poole.
MAJOR HONOURS: Queensland Under-21 State Champion: 2009; Australian Under-21 Champion: 2009, 2010, 2011; World Under-21 Champion: 2009, 2010; New South Wales State Champion: 2010.
CLUB HONOURS: League Championship winner: 2009 [King’s Lynn], 2011 [Poole]; Premier Trophy winner: 2009 [King’s Lynn]; Knock-Out Cup winner: 2009 [King’s Lynn], 2010 [Poole], 2011 [Poole]; Pairs Championship winner: 2011 [Poole].
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 6.63 (EL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Having ridden spectacularly for Boston at Conference-level during the second-half of the 2008 campaign, the teenage sensation started the 2009 season at reserve for King’s Lynn in British speedway’s middle sphere. However, he soon became the talk of the sport after a string of magnificent displays, which led to him moving up to the side’s No. 1 slot in early June.

His blistering form continued and saw him shoot to pole position in the overall Premier League averages, before injury struck at Edinburgh on 10 July. The Aussie was leading heat five, but lost control on the pits bend and crashed into the safety fence, chipping a bone at the bottom of an ankle.

The injury necessitated a spell on the sidelines and the use of guests in his place; the youngster quickly recovered, though, returning to the Stars’ line-up on 2 August to continue his high-scoring exploits.

Ward’s efforts helped propel King’s Lynn to a League Championship and Premier Trophy double, whilst individually the talented Aussie finished a gallant runner-up to home representative Ricky Ashworth in the Premier League Riders’ Championship at Sheffield on 27 September.

Further glory came his way on 3 October, though, when he annexed the World Under-21 Championship with a typically breathtaking display at Goričan, Croatia.

Ward was to retain top spot in the Premier League averages, finishing up with a real-time figure of close on 10 points per match. He did, however, sustain a back injury whilst representing Australia against Great Britain in an Under-25 Test match at Ipswich on 15 October.

That necessitated a trip to Poland, where he received specialist attention from his Extra League club’s physiotherapist at Toruń, before returning to the UK for more treatment with a specialist in London.

He subsequently appeared in the first leg of the Knock-Out Cup final at Edinburgh on 23 October, but missed the return fixture five days later when the Stars secured an aggregate victory. That capped a superb year for the club, as they collected their third piece of major silverware.

Completing a swift rise through the three tiers of British speedway, it was revealed in mid-November that Ward had completed an undisclosed big money transfer from King’s Lynn to Poole for the 2010 season. Indeed, his transfer fee was a club record and exceeded the £28,000 that the Pirates had shelled out for Jason Crump at the tail end of 2006.

In December, Ward won the highly coveted Premier League Rider of the Year award at the annual Speedway Riders’ Association ceremony. The following month, he finished third in the Australian Championship and, on 16 January at Mildura, secured his second successive Aussie Under-21 crown.

Despite being burdened with a huge transfer price tag, the Queenslander went on to take the move to the highest UK echelon in his stride, posting an average of just under 8 points a match as the Pirates dominated the domestic campaign to occupy first place in the final league standings. Along the way, he registered his maiden paid maximum at top-flight level on 21 July, when he tallied 14+1 points against Belle Vue in a Knock-Out Cup tie at Wimborne Road.

On 2 October, the Australian sensation became only the second rider in history to retain the World Under-21 Championship at Pardubice, Czech Republic. The 18-year-old defeated Pole Maciej Janowski and Latvian star Maks Bogdanovs in a run-off for the gold medal. This was after the trio tied on 30 championship points in the new three-round series.

Although Poole eventually missed out on the League Championship after losing to Coventry in the Play-Off final, they did at least gain some consolation at Wimborne Road on 27 October, when they clinched an aggregate victory over Eastbourne to lift the Knock-Out Cup; it being Ward’s initial piece of silverware in top-flight British racing, having previously won three trophies at Premier League level with King’s Lynn.

Ward’s final real-time average for the season was 7.93; the impressive figure being derived courtesy of 301 points from forty official appearances. And, on 3 December, he was named FIM Rookie of the Year at a gala award ceremony in Portugal. The Aussie received his award having retained his World Under-21 Championship title.

In what was a double celebration for speedway, World Champion Tomasz Gollob won the Personality of the Year award, with the duo beating off strong competition from several motorcycle disciplines, including MotoGP World Champion Jorge Lorenzo, MAXXIS FIM E3 Enduro World Champion David Knight and FIM MX1 Motocross World Champion Toni Cairoli.

On 15 December, Poole boss Matt Ford confirmed that both Ward and his Australian compatriot, Chris Holder, would be remaining with the club in 2011. The duo forged a formidable on-track partnership in 2010 that enabled the Pirates to soar to the top of the Sky Sports Elite League, finishing 17 points clear of their closest rivals. In addition, the two were good buddies off-track and helped to form a camaraderie that was infectious amongst the side.

Ward won his third Australian Under-21 Championship on the bounce with an unbeaten performance at North Brisbane on 8 January, emulating Chris Holder and Leigh Adams in claiming a straight hat-trick of titles.

Both his peers had a career record of four titles apiece, Holder having won consecutive titles between 2005 and 2008, whilst Adams’ quartet began in 1988 and he then won three more in the years 1990 to 1992. Ward was relatively unchallenged as he strung five winning rides together to top the qualifying heats, before he headed home Richard Sweetman, Josh Grajczonek and Micky Dyer in the final.

On 17 March, Poole Speedway reported that Ward had ruled himself out of the early stages of the 2011 campaign after a moto-cross accident near Salisbury the previous day had left him with a broken wrist and shoulder. The rider, together with fellow Australians Chris Holder and Davey Watt, had been taking part in some pre-season training when the accident occurred. Jason Doyle was subsequently recalled to the Pirates’ line-up to replace his compatriot.

Then, on 26 March, Poole announced that they had re-declared their starting line-up as a result of on-going uncertainties with the situation regarding the availability of Polish recruit Rafał Dobrucki, who had become embroiled in a row over the new silencers.

The silencers had courted controversy amongst a number of riders and leading Polish figures had vetoed their use on the grounds of considered risks to rider safety. The Polish authority, PZM, had announced that the ‘old’ silencers would be used in any meetings that fell under their jurisdiction.

They had further stated that they wouldn’t sanction start permissions for any of their riders – other than the four riders who had their permissions granted by 17 March – to appear outside of Poland. Dobrucki was one of those four, along with Tomasz Piszcz [Belle Vue], Dawid Lampart [Eastbourne] and Krzystof Kasprzak [Birmingham].

But the rider himself had been one of the leading figures in persuading the PZM to back the riders’ position, which had subsequently left him facing the dilemma of riding for the Pirates, thereby contradicting his belief that the silencers were unsafe, or by remaining firm to the cause.

Matt Ford explained that the situation with Dobrucki had effectively become ‘untenable’ and, whilst the rider didn’t want to let the Pirates down, he did have his views on the use of the silencers, which conflicted with those of the BSPA.

As a result, the Pirates’ promoter felt unable to let the matter drift on any further and made the decision to move ahead without him. The club restructured the side in such a way that Jason Doyle was effectively the Pole’s replacement, with Ward re-declared in the 1-7.

The Aussie had been having oxygen chamber therapy on his shoulder and had responded well, but although he was still thought to be about a fortnight away from a return to the saddle, by making the change it meant he would be able to slot straight back into the side as soon as he was given the go-ahead. In the meantime, Poole operated the rider replacement facility for him, beginning with their first league match of the campaign at Birmingham on 28 March.

Just 30 days after sustaining his injuries, Ward returned to action in the Emil Kramer Memorial meeting at Somerset on 15 April, when he included a hat-trick of race wins in a 13-point tally, before being beaten into second place by former Poole team-mate Bjarne Pedersen in the grand final.  

Shortly after, the Pirates clinched the first piece of top-flight silverware for 2011 when, on 27 April, the Australian duo of Ward and Chris Holder romped to victory in the Elite League Pairs Championship at King’s Lynn. The Poole pairing defeated Belle Vue’s Chris Harris and Rory Schlein in the final after getting the better of Wolverhampton in the second semi-final on a night of thrilling racing at the Norfolk Arena.

Ward was to show blistering form in the Elite League and continued in that vein when he lived up to his billing as pre-meeting favourite by winning the first round of the World Under-21 Final at Poole on 24 July.

The Australian star, who was going for a third successive overall title, won a three-man run-off against Maciej Janowski and Dennis Andersson. However, the following evening, he sustained a groin injury and faced a spell on the sidelines after a crash in the Pirates’ televised league match at Coventry. He wasn’t out of action for long, though, as Ward handed Poole a massive boost on 1 August by declaring himself fit to return from injury ahead of schedule.

With Ward and Chris Holder forming a dynamic spearhead, the Pirates went to to take victory in the Elite League Play-Offs – defeating Eastbourne in the final – and the Dorset side completed a clean sweep of the top-flight trophies on 20 October, when they sealed an aggregate success over Belle Vue to retain the Knock-Out Cup.

FIM Speedway Grand Prix Record:
Ward was named as the wildcard for the 2011 FIM Torun Speedway Grand Prix of Poland and was scheduled to make his SGP debut at the Marian Rose Motorarena on Saturday 27 August.

FIM Speedway World Cup Record:
SWC tournaments: 2
Events: 5 – 10th on Australia’s list; 66th on SWC all-time list
Points: 40 – 9th on Australia’s list; 52nd on SWC all-time list
Finals: 1
Gold medals: 0

WARWICK, Daniel (Danny) John
DATE OF BIRTH: 21 November 1983, Poole, Dorset.
BRITISH CAREER: (2002) Newport II; (2003) Newport II, Poole; (2004) Weymouth, Swindon II, King’s Lynn II; (2005) Newport II; (2006) Berwick, Weymouth; (2007) Somerset, Sittingbourne; (2008) Reading; (2009) Berwick, Bournemouth; (2010-11) Isle of Wight.
MAJOR HONOURS: Knock-Out Cup winner: 2009 [Bournemouth]; League Championship winner: 2009 [Bournemouth].
RIDER LINKS: Brother of Carl Warwick (born: 7 October 1981, Poole, Dorset).
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 7.41 (NL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Warwick took his first speedway laps when aged sixteen at Reading’s then-training circuit in 2000. It wasn’t until 2002 that he made his Conference League debut, however, when he rode for Newport against Carmarthen at Queensway Meadows on 1 April. And, in something of a sensational start, he sped to a tally of 11+1 points from seven starts.

He went on to race in a total of twenty-two official matches for the Welsh outfit and, with 103 points to his name, posted a satisfactory 4.83 average. The year also saw him ride for Reading, when he made a guest appearance for the side in a Premier League encounter at Swindon on 29 August. Despite having to fill the absent Anders Henriksson’s berth at No. 3, he acquitted himself well to net 2 points from three starts.

In 2003, Warwick again raced for Newport at Conference level, raising his average to a 6.05 figure. It was a fairly busy season for the Dorset lad, since he also represented Poole on six occasions in the British League Cup competition.

That wasn’t the end of his activities for the year, since he also made guest appearances for both the senior Newport side and Exeter in the Premier League, and also rode in the opening meeting at the new Weymouth circuit, finishing as runner-up to Justin Elkins in the Wessex Rosebowl on 15 August.

Although Warwick was to begin the 2004 campaign in a Weymouth race-jacket, he didn’t stay with the Dorset side for long and subsequently linked with Swindon Sprockets. He proved to be a very dependable rider for the Wiltshire side, appearing in a full quota of twenty-four meetings and scoring 156 points for a solid 6.58 average.

The highlight was a paid maximum (10+2 points) on 12 July, when the Sprockets ran riot to swamp Newport 65-27 in a one-sided match at the Abbey Stadium. The rules in operation at the time also permitted him to represent King’s Lynn in the Conference Trophy, but he was to make just a solitary appearance for the Norfolk team.

He returned to race for Newport Mavericks in 2005 and, a year later, made his official Premier League bow when joining Berwick. Although that meant a long distance round-trip for home meetings, he thoroughly enjoyed himself with the Borders club to register 125 points and a 3.36 average.

His reliability and willingness to do anything in the club’s cause made him very popular with the Bandits’ supporters and he deservedly scooped the end-of-term Rider of the Year award. The season also saw him make three late appearances for Weymouth in the Conference Shield.

In 2007, he linked with Somerset and, remarkably, for a fourth successive season, stayed ever-present for his main side throughout their busy 46-match schedule, yielding 211 points and an impressive 5.12 average. He also enjoyed a stint with Sittingbourne in the Conference League, making ten appearances for the Kent side.

His incredible ever-present record – which totalled 138 official meetings and was achieved with four different teams – came to an unfortunate end in 2008 when, having linked with Reading, he sustained a small fracture to his right ankle in a challenge match against Somerset at Smallmead on 17 March.

That occurred in the original running of heat two, when he took a knock from visiting rider Stephan Katt entering the first bend and came down heavily. Although he bravely participated in the re-run, Warwick was clearly in pain and pulled up without completing the race.

Soon after returning to the saddle, he was in the wars once more in another home match versus King’s Lynn in the Knock-Out Cup on 28 April. Again, in heat two, he was inadvertently clipped on the first corner as both visiting riders, John Oliver and Kozza Smith, came to grief.

The upshot was a fractured shoulder for the Poole-born rider and a lengthy spell out of action. He returned to the Racers’ line-up for the last sector of the season but, with the track closing at the end of the term, had to move on in 2009.

Warwick was to secure a second spell with Berwick, but lost his team spot in May when the Bandits opted to bring in the locally-based Greg Blair. Renowned for his dreadlocks, the popular speedster subsequently joined Bournemouth later the same month, replacing Luke Priest in the line-up. Belatedly in the season, on 8 October, he hit a bump on the Poole racing strip and was catapulted over his handlebars in an alarming heat ten spill against the USA Dream Team.

His crash was described as one of the worst ever seen at the venue and he was extremely lucky to walk away from it. Despite being black and blue, he bravely turned out for the Buccaneers in a Play-Off semi-final tie at Weymouth the following evening, before the pain got too much for him to represent the side in the first leg of the Knock-Out Cup final at Buxton on 11 October.

He did, however, return to the line-up as they sealed KOC glory in the second leg four days afterwards. And, later in the month, he helped Bournemouth secure the League Championship courtesy of a Play-Off final success over Plymouth. In January, the Isle of Wight announced that they had agreed a one-year loan deal with the Buccaneers for Warwick’s services in the new term.

‘The Dreaded one’, as the rider had become known because of his distinctive hairstyle, celebrated his landing of a 2010 team berth by heading off to Grindelwald in Switzerland for an extended snowboarding holiday! He was to remain ever-present throughout the Islanders’ official 28-match schedule, totalling 247 points for a real-time average of 7.82.

In 2011, Warwick was employed by Poole Speedway as a mechanic for Russian thrill-merchant Renat Gafurov and, keeping himself really busy, he also returned to the Isle of Wight team-sheet as a replacement for Brendan Johnson on 1 July.

WATT, David (Davey) John
DATE OF BIRTH: 6 January 1978, Townsville, Queensland, Australia.
BRITISH CAREER: (2001) Isle of Wight; (2002) Newcastle; (2003) King’s Lynn, Poole; (2004) Rye House, Poole, Eastbourne; (2005) Eastbourne; (2006) Oxford; (2007) Eastbourne; (2008) Poole; (2009) Eastbourne; (2010-11) Poole.
MAJOR HONOUR: Queensland State Champion: 2005.
CLUB HONOURS: Young Shield winner: 2001 [Isle of Wight]; League Championship winner: 2003, 2004, 2008, 2011 [all Poole]; Elite Shield winner: 2009 [Eastbourne]; Knock-Out Cup winner: 2010, 2011 [both Poole].
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 7.59 (EL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Having first ridden a bike at just 3-years-of-age in 1981, Watt was already a vastly experienced motorcyclist when he initially appeared in British speedway with the Isle of Wight in 2001.

His official debut for the Islanders occurred in a Premier Trophy encounter at Swindon on 29 March, when he recorded a paid 5 points. He subsequently appeared for Newcastle and King’s Lynn, respectively, in the ensuing couple of seasons, whilst also riding for parent club Poole in the latter year.

A loan move to Rye House followed in 2004 and he also continued to ‘double-up’ with the Pirates, sharing a position with André Compton. However, he was released by the Dorset side in mid-June, when they re-signed Krzysztof Kasprzak.

A month later, the Aussie returned to a top-flight position, however, when he linked with Eastbourne to share a post alongside Andrew Moore. Watt was to move into the Elite League on a full-time basis with the Eagles in 2005, but spent a term with Oxford a year later, before resuming with the East Sussex club in 2007.

Following that, the Australian international played an integral role in Poole’s 2008 Elite League-winning side, forming a potent unit with the likes of Bjarne Pedersen, Chris Holder, Magnus Zetterström, Adam Skórnicki, Freddie Eriksson and Daniel Davidsson.

The popular rider, renowned for his fast starts, bravery, commitment and exciting riding style, was unable to be accommodated in 2009, though, and instead again linked with his former club, Eastbourne, on loan.

Late, in November, however, the Pirates were delighted to announce that the locally-based speedster would rejoin them as skipper in 2010. He proved an inspirational leader, as the Dorseteers dominated the regular Elite League programme to occupy top spot in the standings, with the Aussie maintaining an average of over 8 points a match.

And, having been called into the British Grand Prix as a replacement for the injured Emil Sayfutdinov at Cardiff on 10 July, he was to fill the Russian’s place in a further three of the final four rounds after the hard-charging rider from Salavat had taken another knock in the Scandinavian GP at Målilla, Sweden, on 14 August.

Watt overcame a hand injury whilst making a guest appearance for Coventry in a league fixture versus Peterborough at Brandon Stadium on 20 August. And although Poole eventually missed out on the League Championship after losing to Coventry in the Play-Off final, they did at least gain some consolation at Wimborne Road on 27 October, when they clinched an aggregate victory over Eastbourne to lift the Knock-Out Cup; it being Watt’s fourth piece of silverware with the Pirates, having previously won three league titles in their colours.

The Aussie was to conclude the campaign with 324.5 points to his name, having been the only rider to remain ever-present throughout the Pirates’ forty-two official matches; that yielded a real-time average of 8.01. And, during a club sponsors’ evening on 17 December, it was confirmed that Poole would again be led by Watt in 2011 after the Australian had endorsed terms.

The Pirates’ skipper sustained an ankle injury in the club’s opening meeting of the season, a challenge match at Eastbourne on 20 March, before he had even had a chance to complete four laps. Watt was taken for X-rays on the affected area after appearing to lay his machine down to avoid fallen Eastbourne rider Dawid Lampart at the start of his first race of the meeting.

The rider was pleased to learn that there were no broken bones and underwent a fitness test prior to the return match at Wimborne Road on 23 March with a view to declaring himself fit which, as things transpired, he did before going on to net a 9-point tally.

Watt was to average 8 points a match for the Pirates and overcame a late-season injury to lead the club to the Elite League Championship, courtesy of an aggregate victory over Eastbourne in the Play-Off final. Amazingly, it was the Australian’s fourth such success with the Dorset outfit. Shortly after, he was also on hard to collect the Knock-Out Cup after victory in the final against Belle Vue.

FIM Speedway Grand Prix Record:
Grand Prix ridden: 4 – 83rd on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix points: 19 – 75th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix races: 20 – 74th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix race wins: 3 – 72nd on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix wins: 0 – n/a      
Grand Prix finals: 0 – n/a

FIM Speedway World Cup Record:
SWC tournaments: 6
Events: 12 – 5th on Australia’s list; 27th on SWC all-time list
Points: 73 – 6th on Australia’s list; 33rd on SWC all-time list
Finals: 4
Gold medals: 0

WEBSTER, Timothy (Tim) Mark
DATE OF BIRTH: 26 May 1989, Birmingham, West Midlands.
BRITISH CAREER: (2004) King’s Lynn II; (2005) Weymouth, Scunthorpe; (2006) Newport II; (2007) Plymouth; (2008-09) Weymouth; (2010) Newport II; (2011) Stoke, Edinburgh.
CLUB HONOURS: League Championship winner: 2008 [Weymouth]; Pairs Championship winner: 2011 [Stoke].
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 6.68 (NL), 3.00 (PL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Webster first rode a speedway bike in October 2003 at an Olle Nygren training school and, a year later, made his official debut with King’s Lynn’s second side – the then-nicknamed Starlets – in their final Conference Trophy match of the season in an away encounter versus Weymouth on 31 October, failing to score from four outings.

He made just a single Knock-Out Cup appearance for Weymouth the following year and also raced in one Conference League match for Scunthorpe. Thirteen appearances came his way for Newport Mavericks in 2006 as he continued to make his way in the sport. A season with Plymouth in 2007 proved a good move as he attained a real-time average of 3.74 from twenty-seven official matches.

Webster then enjoyed the first of two terms in Weymouth’s colours in 2008, when he increased his average to above 6 points per match. Highlighting a fruitful 2009 campaign, he established a new track record of 50.9 seconds for the Radipole Lane circuit on 8 August; this occurred in heat two of a National League fixture against Newport.

Prior to the season’s end it was confirmed by Wildcats’ boss Phil Bartlett that the rider was set for a full transfer back to Newport, whom he had previously been an asset of. This came after Webster had officially requested a permanent move with the Speedway Control Bureau. He was to post an average in excess of 6 points per match for the Hornets in 2010, but faced an enforced spell on the sidelines after sustaining a broken wrist in heat one of an away league match at King’s Lynn on 1 August.

Whilst he recuperated, Webster’s team spot was filled by Luke Priest in a subsequent re-declaration. However, when Mark Jones’ six-month work permit came to an end later that same month, Webster found himself recalled to the side upon his recovery from injury.

His return didn’t last long, though, as he suffered a broken ankle in a National Trophy engagement at the Isle of Wight on 21 September, which brought his season to a premature end. The injury occurred in heat seven, when Webster laid down his machine on the third bend in an attempt to avoid fallen team-mate Tom Young. He had represented the club on twenty-three occasions, scoring 143 points for an average of 6.98.

On 8 February 2011, Stoke announced the signing of Webster on a full transfer from Newport ahead of their first season at National League level, having decided to drop down a tier for financial reasons. He was to be a regular tall-scorer for the Potters and, on 18 June, he partnered Simon Lambert to glory in the National League Pairs Championship at Newport’s Queensway Meadows racing strip, as they defeated the home duo of Todd Kurtz and Jay Herne in the final.

Webster’s form – and his excellent gating ability – was to earn him a Premier League call-up from Edinburgh as a direct replacement for Lee Dicken, the Scottish outfit announcing the move on 29 June. However, his spell with the Monarchs was to conclude towards the end of August, when the Armadale-based club elected to draft in Byron Bekker. Webster had faced plenty of long-distance travel for Premier League meetings and had suffered several falls during his stint with Edinburgh.

However, he saw the season out on the injured list after suffering ligament damage to his hand, as well as broken knuckles and fingers after falling in heat six of the Potters’ Play-Off semi-final at Mildenhall on 2 October.

WELLS, Rick (Ricky)
DATE OF BIRTH: 27 July 1991, Auckland, North Island, New Zealand.
BRITISH CAREER: (2009) Coventry; (2010) Stoke; (2011) Wolverhampton, Plymouth.
MAJOR HONOURS: USA Under-21 Champion: 2007, 2008; AMA American Champion: 2009; California State Champion: 2009.
CLUB HONOUR: Elite Shield winner: 2011 [Wolverhampton].
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 3.33 (EL).
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 3.33 (EL), 5.55 (PL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Previously nicknamed ‘The Kiwi Kid’, Wells – who races on an American licence – had the start of his British career delayed slightly with Coventry in 2009, whilst his official paperwork was ironed out. He was temporarily replaced by Filip Šitera, before being able to line-up for the Bees in April.

The Warwickshire outfit had been taking a keen interest in Wells’ progress for over a year, and members of their management team had attended his meetings on previous trips to Europe, including his run to the semi-finals of the World Under-21 Championship in 2008.

Having agreed to join the Brandon-based club, it initially looked likely that the Auckland-born rider would be loaned out to a Premier League outfit in order to gain more experience but, with the regulations ruling that out, he made the big step directly into the top-flight.

The youngster experienced the highs and lows of the sport in a three-day spell as the season unfolded, winning the American Championship on 19 September. But, on 21 September, he crashed heavily in heat eleven of the Play-Off semi-final between Coventry and Swindon at Brandon Stadium, sustaining bad bruising to his lower back, although thankfully no broken bones. That necessitated a spell on the sidelines for the rider.

Wells’ success in the 41st United States National Championship at the famous Orange County Fairgrounds, Costa Mesa, California, made him the youngest-ever winner of the title at 18 years and 54 days old. He was also the first foreign-born rider to claim the Championship.

In November, it was revealed that the Californian would race for Premier League Stoke in 2010 – in a loan deal from Coventry – having had a tough debut British season in the highest sphere. And, in December, the Bees announced that he would be ‘doubling-up’ in their reserve department, alongside Josh Auty.

However, the Bees were subsequently forced to review their options when they learnt that Wells wasn’t eligible for a place in their squad because riders without an established Premier League average are not permitted to ‘double-up’ or take the No. 8 stand-by position at EL level. The Warwickshire club eventually opted to sign Richard Sweetman for the role.

Wells recorded his best score in British speedway with a haul of paid 17 (14+3 points) from seven rides in Stoke’s home league match against Glasgow on 19 June. And he went on to be the Potters’ only ever-present representative throughout their thirty-eight official meetings, from which he yielded 248 points and an average of 5.98.

On 30 January 2011, Wolverhampton announced the signing of Wells ahead of their Elite League campaign. This represented something of a dream move for the rider, who returned to the top-flight at Monmore Green; a track that he rated as his favourite.

He was to average a shade over 4.5 points per match for the Wolves and, on 15 July, the West Midlanders revealed that the Auckland-born rider would be heading South-West the following week to link with Plymouth. He was also to remain in the Wolverhampton squad in a ‘doubling-up’ role with Tero Aarnio.

WETHERS, Matthew James
DATE OF BIRTH: 30 May 1985, Adelaide, South Australia.
BRITISH CAREER: (2003) Armadale, Wolverhampton II, Edinburgh; (2004) Edinburgh, Armadale; (2005) Glasgow, King’s Lynn, Edinburgh; (2006) Edinburgh, Poole; (2007-09) Edinburgh; (2010) Edinburgh, Wolverhampton; (2011) Edinburgh.
MAJOR HONOUR: South Australian State Under-16 Champion: 2001.
CLUB HONOURS: League Championship winner: 2003, 2008, 2010 [all Edinburgh]; Premier Trophy winner: 2008 [Edinburgh]; Play-Off winner: 2008, 2009 [Edinburgh].
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 7.04 (PL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: ‘Stormy’ represented Edinburgh for a seventh successive season in 2009 and was the Armadale-based team’s only remaining rider from the legendary Championship-winning side of 2003. During this time, the mega-popular Aussie had brief spells with other outfits – most notably in 2005 with stints at Glasgow and King’s Lynn – but it’s with the Monarchs that his heart lies.

He went on to become an accomplished competitor with the Scottish outfit, winning the Rider of the Year award in 2007 and adding a further league title in 2008, as well as being part of the side that triumphed in both the Premier Trophy and the Play-Offs.

He posted a real-time average of almost 8 points per match in 2009 and also skippered Edinburgh to another Play-Off success against King’s Lynn in an enthralling final. With a casual approach that hides a natural racing instinct and intelligence, the Adelaide-born rider has tended to come under the radar outside of Scotland where, understandably, he is very highly-rated by the Monarchs’ management.

Naturally, he again remained with Edinburgh in 2010 and in May, following the broken leg sustained by Wolverhampton’s Chris Kerr, he was brought into the Elite League side’s squad in a ‘doubling-up’ capacity. This was the second time he had linked with the Monmore club, having represented the then-Wolf Cubs in the Conference League in 2003.

Wethers spun off when lying third in heat seven of Wolverhampton’s league fixture versus Swindon at Monmore Green on 12 July. The Aussie was thrown from his machine, taking a heavy fall on the last turn. After lengthy treatment, he was taken from the track by ambulance with suspected concussion.

However, he returned to action later in the same week with Edinburgh and went on to seal a third League Championship success in seven years with the Scottish side, forming a particularly potent cutting edge alongside Ryan Fisher and Kevin Wölbert.

At the campaign’s end, he was the only Monarch to remain ever-present throughout the club’s 44-match programme in official competition, from which he registered 353 points and an 8.18 average. His record for the season took him up to tenth place in the Monarchs’ leading all-time league scorers’ list, behind club greats Les Collins, George Hunter, Dave Trownson, Brett Saunders, Peter Carr, Scott Lamb, Kenny McKinna, Doug Templeton and Dick Campbell.

Meanwhile, in his role at Wolverhampton, he made eighteen appearances for 78 points and a healthy 5.30 average. His best performance for the top-flight side occurred in a league match at Belle Vue on 30 June when, riding from a reserve berth, he recorded an excellent 9+1 points from five starts in a 45-45 draw.

On 27 November, at a Video Night, Edinburgh announced the return of the popular Wethers for his ninth season in 2011 and his third as captain.

WHITE-WILLIAMS, James (Jamie)
DATE OF BIRTH: 2 December 1985, Ringland, Newport, Gwent, South Wales.
BRITISH CAREER: (2008) Plymouth; (2009) Weymouth; (2010-11) Newport II.
CLUB HONOUR: Conference Trophy winner: 2008 [Plymouth].
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 4.96 (NL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: The Welshman represented Plymouth in 2008, before switching to Weymouth in 2009, when he made thirty official appearances for 166 points and an impressive real-time average of 5.83. However, in November, Newport revealed that they had signed White-Williams as a full asset to represent his home city club at National League level in 2010.

He was knocked unconscious when he clattered through the first bend safety fence after tangling with home rider Marc Owen during the Hornets’ league fixture at Rye House on 11 September. As a result, he was sidelined with a shoulder strain.

Although he subsequently returned to action, White-Williams was to sustain another shoulder injury during the Farewell to Weymouth Speedway meeting at Radipole Lane on 22 October, which brought the curtain down on his campaign. He had made twenty-nine appearances for Newport’s National League side, scoring 159 points for an average of 5.30.

On 4 February, having previously declared their intention to again run a second team at Newport in 2011, the Welsh club confirmed that White-Williams would remain with the Hornets. He joined Aussies Jay Herne and Todd Kurtz, fellow Newportonians Tom Young and David Gough, plus Devonians Mattie Bates and Richard Andrews in the side’s starting line-up.

WIDMAN, Christopher (Chris) David
DATE OF BIRTH: 25 March 1990, Leicester, Leicestershire.
BRITISH CAREER: (2005) Scunthorpe; (2008) Boston; (2009-10) King’s Lynn II; (2011) Belle Vue II.
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 3.00 (NL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Widman first sampled speedway on a 125cc machine at the then-Sheffield training track in September 2000, before going on to compete in the British Under-15 Championship in 2004 and 2005. He was fifteenth in the inaugural year of the Championship, but an expected improvement the following term was unfortunately scuppered by a broken arm.

His Conference League debut occurred for Scunthorpe in a home match versus Rye House on 24 April 2005 but, due to his arm injury, it was to be one of only three official appearances that year. He failed to add to his official tally until 2008, when he rode in a dozen matches for Boston during their last season of operating from the Norfolk Arena raceway, including appearances in the finals of both the Play-Offs and Knock-Out Cup. .

He was still based at the same venue in 2009, when he made fourteen appearances at National League level for King’s Lynn, scoring 46 points for a 3.46 real-time average. In February 2010, the re-branded Young Stars revealed that Widman would remain on board for the new campaign.

However, an amendment to the side’s declaration in May saw him moved from a spot in the 1-7 to instead fill the No. 8 berth, as Jake Knight was promoted from the position in his place. He was to lose his spot in the squad in mid-June, though, when the Norfolk club signed Lewis Kerr.

At the season’s end, he had totalled eleven appearances for the Young Stars although five of those were classed as a guest when he wasn’t included in the team declaration. His six official appearances produced 15 points and a 2.81 average.

Following the close season decision of Belle Vue to run a second team in the 2011 National League, the Manchester outfit announced on 16 February that Widman would be part of a solid line-up that also included local boys Kyle Howarth and Jason Garrity, along with Byron Bekker, Scott Richardson, Karl Mason and Adam McKinna.

WILKINSON, Carl Adam
DATE OF BIRTH: 16 May 1981, Boston, Lincolnshire.
BRITISH CAREER: (1997) Peterborough II; (1998) Norfolk; (1999) King’s Lynn II; (2000) Boston, Newcastle, Glasgow; (2001) Boston; (2002-03) Newport, Newport II; (2004) Newport; (2005) Boston, Berwick; (2006) Newport, Ipswich; (2007) Newcastle, Wolverhampton; (2008-10) Scunthorpe, Ipswich; (2011) Scunthorpe.
CLUB HONOURS: League Championship winner: 1997 [Peterborough II]; Knock-Out Cup winner: 2000 [Boston].
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 6.83 (PL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Wilkinson was named as one of Ipswich’s ‘doubling-up’ riders for 2009 and shared the position with Australian Kozza Smith. The Brit first burst on to the scene at Amateur League level for the then-Peterborough Thundercats in May 1997 and his distinctive, spectacular riding style has thrilled crowds the length and breath of the UK ever since at a variety of clubs.

Prior to the end of the season, ‘Wilko’ tied-up a deal to remain with Scunthorpe for a third successive term in 2010 and, in December, it was announced that he would also remain with Ipswich in a ‘doubling-up’ capacity, alongside Linus Sundström. But the Witches were to find themselves propping up the league table and, in mid-July, they opted to replace Wilkinson with the same Kozza Smith who, of course, he had shared the role with in the previous season.

Wilkinson was one of three riders to remain ever-present throughout Scunthorpe’s forty official meetings; the other two being David Howe and Magnus Karlsson. Those appearances yielded 321 points and a solid 7.57 averages for the North Lincolnshire outfit.

His most eye-catching performance at the Eddie Wright Raceway occurred in a league match against Rye House on 4 July, when he tallied a whopping 16+1 points from six starts out of the No. 4 berth. On the Scorpions’ travels, his best showing came at King’s Lynn just three days later, when he carded 14+1 points, again from half-a-dozen outings.

Meanwhile, prior to his departure from Ipswich, he had scored 16 points from nine meetings for an average of 2.11. At the re-shaped Foxhall Heath raceway, his best performance had been to score 4 points from seven rides in a league match against Lakeside on 13 May, whilst on the Witches’ travels his leading display was 4+2 points from four starts at Eastbourne on 10 April.

In December, the Scunthorpe promotion confirmed that the exciting rider would remain on board with them for a fourth straight term in 2011. He was joined by fellow Englishmen David Howe, Ben Wilson and Steve Worrall, Dane Thomas Jørgensen, Swede Viktor Bergström and Finn Tero Aarnio in a cosmopolitan starting line-up. With a total of 138 career appearances for the Scorpions going into the season, Wilko was seventh in Scunthorpe’s all-time list.

Regrettably, the popular rider was badly injured in the Scorpions’ home league match versus Rye House on 8 April. A nasty crash in heat seven left Wilkinson with a double break of his left leg and Rockets’ captain Chris Neath with a suspected broken arm. The Scunthorpe rider was subsequently replaced in the team by Joe Haines.  

In mid-June, Wilkinson suffered a setback in his bid to return to action from his broken leg, having received the news that the injury wasn’t healing. Unfortunately, an X-ray showed his injury hadn’t healed at all since the day he did it. But he was to make a remarkable recovery thereafter and returned to the Scorpions’ line-up in September as a replacement for the injured Tero Aarnio.

WILSON, Ben Ryan
DATE OF BIRTH: 15 March 1986, Sheffield, South Yorkshire.
BRITISH CAREER: (2001-02) Sheffield II; (2003) Sheffield, Sheffield II, Buxton; (2004) Sheffield, Sheffield II, Carmarthen; (2005) Sheffield; (2006) Sheffield, Wolverhampton; (2007) Sheffield, Belle Vue; (2008) Sheffield; (2009) Redcar, Poole; (2010) Redcar, Stoke; (2011) Scunthorpe.
MAJOR HONOUR: British Under-21 Champion: 2006.
CLUB HONOUR: League Championship winner: 2001 [Sheffield II].
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 5.92 (PL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Wilson’s first steps on the speedway ladder took place at the Sheffield training school, before he took his bow at Conference level with the Prowlers in 2001. He was to make huge strides with Sheffield’s second side a year later, remaining ever-present throughout their twenty-four official matches to yield 183 points and a 7.49 average.

A real highlight occurred on 29 July, when he romped to a first-ever paid maximum in a home league match versus Wimbledon, notching 12+3 points from five starts. His rapid progress earned him a place in the senior Tigers team in 2003 and he held his spot throughout, recording a 3.81 average from forty meetings.

The year also saw him continue to gain experience with the Prowlers in the Conference League and he also enjoyed a couple of outings with Buxton in the Conference Trophy. Indeed, his form for Sheffield’s youngsters was excellent, as he posted a 9.47 average and hit half-a-dozen maximums (2 full and 4 paid) from eighteen appearances.

Wilson’s sharp rise gathered momentum in 2004, when his average for the Tigers moved up to 5.15. Meanwhile, he again represented the Prowlers and, although the side had curtailed their activities to the Conference Trophy, he achieved an impressive 9.03 average. Aside from that, he also rode in four Conference League matches for Carmarthen.

In an eventful season, he took a splendid victory in the Jeff Hall Suzuki Top Gun Championship at Sheffield on 27 May after defeating Richard Hall in a title run-off. And, a little over two months later, he made his international debut for a touring Great Britain Under-21 side against their Swedish counterparts in Örebro.

Regrettably, though, he was to end the campaign with a broken collarbone, suffered on 29 October whilst appearing for the GB Under-21s versus Scotland at Edinburgh’s Armadale Stadium. The meeting was held amidst dreadfully wet conditions and was abandoned after the fourth heat, which had seen Wilson collect his painful injury when David McAllan had inadvertently spun and fallen in front of him.

Fully fit for 2005, the Sheffield-born youngster was to ride solely for his hometown team. His improvement continued unabated, as he remained ever-present throughout their 50-match programme to card a 6.03 average. The pinnacle of Wilson’s career occurred in 2006, however, when he was crowned British Under-21 Champion at King’s Lynn on 3 May.

The meeting saw him run a second to Edward Kennett first time out, but he went on to brilliantly collect 14 points from his five starts. That booked him a comfortable passage through to the final, which he subsequently won superbly ahead of Daniel King, Lewis Bridger and Steve Boxall. Meanwhile, for the Tigers, he once more came on a bomb, registering an 8.11 average from fifty official meetings.

He was again identified with Sheffield in 2007 and also filled a ‘doubling up’ role alongside James Wright at Belle Vue; although he was to be restricted to just one appearance in the Elite League against Reading at Kirkmanshulme Lane on 29 August.

Yet another term with Sheffield followed but, having been on the club’s books for eight seasons, a change of track in 2009 saw Wilson link with Redcar. And, in May that year, he also joined Poole in a ‘doubling-up’ capacity alongside the late Paul Fry, when the Pirates’ management released Carl Stonehewer and Tomasz Piszcz.

He seemed likely to miss the remainder of the season after sustaining a broken heel, when he lost control and crashed whilst leading heat fourteen of Redcar’s televised league match versus Edinburgh on 24 August.

However, he defied the medical experts and took part in a behind-closed-doors practice session, before amazingly returning to the Bears’ line-up in an away league match at Sheffield on 3 September – just 10 days after his accident! Wilson, having moved away from his Owlerton ‘comfort zone’, proved a big hit with the Bears and deservedly won the club’s Rider of the Year award.

The Yorkshireman continued his excellent form with Redcar in the early weeks of the 2010 campaign, but came a cropper in the Bears’ Premier League match at Berwick on 1 May. In heat nine, he took a double points outing, only to plough through the safety fence at high speed exiting the second bend.

He ended up against the outer spectator retaining wall, before being taken to hospital for further treatment. Although not diagnosed immediately, Wilson suffered a chipped bone in the heel he had injured the previous term, whilst also hurting an arm and receiving severe bruising.

He returned to action for Redcar in a Premier Trophy match at Sheffield on 27 May but, broadly speaking, was unable to replicate his pre-injury form and this culminated in him losing his team spot to Joe Haines early in August. At the time he had attained an average of 6.56, having recorded 156 points from twenty-three official appearances.

His high spot for the Bears at home was a haul of 14+1 points from six rides versus Edinburgh in a league encounter on 29 April. Meanwhile, on the team’s travels, his best showing came at Newport on 25 April, when he totalled 12 points from five starts.

Despite being dropped he was snapped-up almost immediately by Stoke to replace Jan Graversen, although his season was to end abruptly on 9 October after a heavy crash in a league fixture against Newport at Loomer Road. This saw Wilson collected by Wasps’ Kyle Legault in his first race of the meeting and, although he was later released from hospital, the rider was left feeling decidedly second-hand.

He had ridden in just seven matches for the Potters, from which he gleaned 33 points and a 5.48 average. With the addition of his earlier meetings for Redcar, it gave Wilson a seasonal tally of 189 points from thirty official appearances and an overall average of 6.34.

As 2010 ticked into 2011, Scunthorpe announced that they acquired the services of Wilson ahead of the new season and that he would start the campaign alongside Tero Aarnio in one of the Scorpions’ second-string positions.

He was to average over 6.5 points a match for the side, before suffering knee and wrist injuries in a heavy crash during heat thirteen of Scunthorpe’s home league match versus Plymouth on 19 August. Wilson had been unbeaten to that stage but the home side still gained a 56-37 win, with five riders paid for at least 12 points.

FIM Speedway Grand Prix Record:
Wilson has signed on as a reserve for one Grand Prix, at Cardiff, Wales, for the 2006 FIM British Speedway GP, but didn’t get a ride and is still waiting to make his SGP debut.

WOFFINDEN, Tai
DATE OF BIRTH: 10 August 1990, Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire.
BRITISH CAREER: (2006) Scunthorpe, Sheffield; (2007) Rye House, Scunthorpe, Poole; (2008) Rye House; (2009-11) Wolverhampton.
MAJOR HONOURS: Conference League Riders’ Champion: 2007; British Under-18 Champion: 2007, 2008; British Under-21 Champion: 2008, 2011; Premier League Riders’ Champion: 2008.
CLUB HONOURS: League Championship winner: 2006 [Scunthorpe], 2007 [Rye House and Scunthorpe], 2009 [Wolverhampton]; Knock-Out Cup winner: 2006, 2007 [both Scunthorpe]; Conference Trophy winner: 2006, 2007 [both Scunthorpe]; Conference Shield winner: 2006 [Scunthorpe]; Four-Team Championship winner: 2007 [Scunthorpe]; Elite Shield winner: 2010, 2011 [both Wolverhampton].
RIDER LINKS: Son of Rob Woffinden (born: 27 March 1962, Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire).
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 7.06 (EL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: In October 2006, Wolverhampton won the race to sign the highly talented youngster on a full contract. He subsequently spent two seasons with Rye House in the Premier League, before stepping up to the Elite League on a full-time basis with the Wolves in 2009.

It was hard not to get excited about the talented Woffinden, whose progress through the leagues was emphatic and included the scooping of numerous individual titles along the way. He learnt to ride speedway in Perth, Australia, prior to beginning his British career with Scunthorpe – just like his father, Rob, had done in 1978 – before progressing on to Rye House.

In 2008, ‘Wuffy’ occupied a hugely impressive third place in the British Final staged at Swindon and, in the 2009 event at Poole on 20 May, he replicated that performance, finishing behind Chris Harris and Edward Kennett. He went on to play a vital role in Wolves’ League Championship success, netting 303 points from thirty-seven official appearances to yield a remarkable real-time average of 8.30.

In November, he was named as one of the four permanent wildcards for the 2010 Grand Prix series, along with Hans Andersen, Chris Harris and Wolverhampton team-mate Fredrik Lindgren. And, in mid-December, the Wolves’ management confirmed that he would remain with them for a second successive term.

Regrettably, his dad passed away on 30 January, aged just 47, following a near year-long battle with cancer. He had been a major influence on his son’s career and was held in high regard within the Wolves’ camp for helping to generate such a wonderful team spirit amongst the side on their way to the league title success.

Woffinden jnr found the ideal distraction the day after his father’s sad passing by getting back on his steed and completing some testing at Scunthorpe’s Eddie Wright Raceway. Another mark of distinction came his way in March when, at 19 years-of-age, he was instated as the Wolverhampton skipper.  

Wuffy suffered ligament damage to a wrist when he fell awkwardly after clipping Peterborough guest Scott Nicholls’ rear wheel in heat fifteen of Wolves’ home league match on 17 May. Bravely, after receiving a pain-killing injection from Ipswich-based injury specialist Brian Simpson, he returned to action five days later in the Czech GP and recorded his first-ever race win in the series.

He was in the wars again during Event Two of the Speedway World Cup at King’s Lynn on 26 July, when he crashed in his second outing. Despite taking a knock to the ribs, he rode on as Great Britain qualified directly to the final and, although he was struggling to breathe properly, he vowed to race through the pain barrier in the pursuit of glory for his country.

Then, in heat fifteen of Wolverhampton’s league match at Swindon on 2 September, he clattered into the air safety barrier during the initial attempt to run the race. As a result, he was forced to miss the Elite League Pairs Championship at Ipswich two days later and was also unable to represent Great Britain in the World Under-21 Team Cup Final at Rye House on the 5th of the month.

When all the numbers were added up at the season’s conclusion, Woffinden had ridden in forty official matches for the Wolves, scoring 344 points for a 7.54 average. And there was little doubt that he would remain with the Monmore men in 2011, his continuance with the club confirmed in the close season.

On 15 April, he romped to a second victory in the British Under-21 Championship at Lakeside. Indeed, the Wolves rider was rarely troubled on his way to a 15-point maximum and, in the showdown final, he brushed aside his rivals to take the crown ahead of Steve Worrall, Joe Haines and Josh Auty.

Unfortunately, on Easter Monday [25 April], Woffinden sustained an injury when he fell whilst riding his BMX bike. It was initially thought that he had broken his collarbone, but it actually turned out to be a shoulder break. It meant several weeks on the sidelines for the Wolverhampton rider, with the team operating the rider replacement facility in his absence.

The rider had hoped to return in Wolves’ Elite Shield clash against Poole at Monmore Green on 23 May, but was forced to pull out over the weekend preceding the fixture. Instead of riding on the day, he returned to hospital for further X-rays on his shoulder. There was good news following that, though, with Woffinden announcing that he would be fit to return a week later.

He duly resumed with Wolverhampton in a home league clash with Belle Vue on 30 May, but only took one outing because the meeting was curtailed after three heats due to rain. Woffinden subsequently helped Great Britain to a 2-0 Test series victory over Australia, scoring 6+2 and 6+1 points at Poole and Lakeside on 1 and 3 June, respectively.

Then, on 6 June, Woffinden was left in a philosophical mood after coming agonisingly close to a first British Championship success at Monmore Green. He ignored the pain from another heavy crash on the night to reach the final with a 15-point maximum. He was then a victim of both incidents that led to the deciding race being stopped, before he had to follow Scott Nicholls and Chris Harris home and settle for third place.

The rider then returned to hospital for X-rays on the shoulder he had broken in his BMX accident at Easter and, fortunately, he was told it hadn’t re-broken. They told him to simply rest and whilst Woffinden was happy to do that on the Tuesday – when Wolverhampton didn’t have a meeting – he was prepared to put his body on the line for the club the following evening in a match at Poole.

FIM Speedway Grand Prix Record:
Grand Prix ridden: 12 – 55th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix points: 51 – 57th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix races: 57 – 51st on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix race wins: 5 – 60th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix wins: 0 – n/a      
Grand Prix finals: 0 – n/a

FIM Speedway World Cup Record:
SWC tournaments: 4
Events: 7 – 7th on Great Britain’s list; 49th on SWC all-time list
Points: 51 – 8th on Great Britain’s list; 47th on SWC all-time list
Finals: 1
Gold medals: 0

WÖLBERT, Kevin
DATE OF BIRTH: 14 June 1989, Crivitz, Parchim, Germany.
BRITISH CAREER: (2009-10) Edinburgh; (2011) Edinburgh, Birmingham, Poole.
MAJOR HONOUR: German Champion: 2008, 2011.
CLUB HONOURS: Play-Off winner: 2009 [Edinburgh]; League Championship winner: 2010 [Edinburgh], 2011 [Poole]; Knock-Out Cup winner: 2011 [Poole].
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 7.96 (PL), 4.78 (EL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Having attracted considerable attention in recent years, the talented Wölbert continued his progression up the speedway ladder when he finished sixth in the European Under-19 Championship at Stralsund in his home country on 30 August 2008.

Then, the following day, he further showcased his abilities by taking third spot in the German Under-21 Championship at Herxheim. However, the pinnacle of his career thus far occurred in Diedenbergen on 14 September, when he was crowned German Champion.

The meeting saw Wölbert notch 12 points to tie for first place with Richard Speiser and defending Champion Martin Smolinski but, in the title run-off, he jetted away and held off the pressing former Coventry rider for a fine success.

Prior to his excellent run on the individual front, Wölbert had also top-scored for Germany as they grabbed a highly creditable second-place behind Sweden in the European Under-19 Team Championship final at Rawicz, Poland, on 22 May.

After lining-up at Edinburgh for the aborted Scottish Open on 31 July 2009, the German subsequently joined the then-reigning Premier League Champions in August, replacing the injured Andrew Tully and also linking with compatriot Max Dilger, who had been acquired by the Monarchs a couple of weeks earlier.

His signing was to be one that re-ignited the season for the Scottish side, as he averaged almost 9 points per match (including bonus) and caused a sensation with his brilliant and daring racing. Regrettably, though, Wölbert was to miss Edinburgh’s trip to King’s Lynn for the second leg of the Knock-Out Cup final after receiving a hand injury during the Promotion Play-Off at Belle Vue on 26 October.

The injury occurred in the nominated heat, when the German’s clutch disintegrated on the first bend, causing him to fall heavily. He also missed out on the return leg against the Aces, but at least had enjoyed the satisfaction of helping the Monarchs to victory over King’s Lynn in the Play-Off final earlier in the month.

Immediately prior to his injury, the club had handed their fans an early Christmas present with the news that Wölbert was the first name on the Edinburgh team-sheet for 2010, the popular rider having agreed to return for a full term.

He endured a bumpy start to the new season, though, in the re-staging of the previous year’s Scottish Open at Armadale on 19 March, when he suffered a couple of heavy crashes. However, he was able to complete the meeting and subsequently declared himself fit for the Monarchs’ opening matches of the campaign. Then Wölbert injured his back in the Monarchs’ home match versus Glasgow in the Premier Trophy on 23 April.

After struggling through several further meetings, he eventually had it re-checked in Germany and underwent an operation to drain off the fluid. The advice was that he should take two weeks’ rest but, being a typical speedway rider, he was back in the saddle much sooner than that.

He was to be a key component of a powerful Edinburgh side that went on to clinch the League Championship, as he formed a powerful spearhead alongside Ryan Fisher and Matthew Wethers. Indeed, he scored a paid maximum (13+2 points) at Stoke on the night – 4 September – the Monarchs clinched the Premier League title and also rode brilliantly in a win at Glasgow the following day to net 13+1 points. A little later, he took a remarkable fourth place in the Czech Golden Helmet, which was probably the best result of his career thus far.

He ended the campaign with a real-time average of 8.53, having scored 301 points from thirty-four official matches. And, on 15 December, the Monarchs announced that Wölbert would remain on board in 2011 and that the rider had pledged to make the UK his top priority. Then, on 5 February, Birmingham revealed that they had snapped-up the German international for their debut Elite League campaign to share a ‘doubling-up’ role with James Wright.

The German was to average a shade over 5 points a match with the Brummies, but both him and Wright were to lose their shared position within the side in July, when the club decided to retain the services of Ulrich Østergaard for the remainder of the season. That followed the Dane’s excellent spell as cover whilst Aleš Dryml recovered from injury.

In September, Poole made a change to their squad ahead of the Elite League Play-Offs by drafting in the German international to replace Gary Havelock in a ‘doubling-up’ position alongside Jason Doyle.

FIM Speedway Grand Prix Record:
Wölbert has signed on as a reserve for one Grand Prix, at Gelsenkirchen, Germany, for the 2008 FIM German Speedway GP, but the event was postponed and moved to Bydgoszcz, Poland and, as he was not named as a reserve for the re-staging, he is still waiting to make his SGP debut.

FIM Speedway World Cup Record:
SWC tournaments: 1
Events: 1 – 18th on Germany’s list; 176th on SWC all-time list
Points: 2 – 11th on Germany’s list; 150th on SWC all-time list
Finals: 0
Gold medals: 0

WOODWARD, Cameron Jackson
DATE OF BIRTH: 8 January 1985, Mildura, Victoria, Australia.
BRITISH CAREER: (2003) Poole; (2004-05) Edinburgh; (2006-11) Eastbourne.
MAJOR HONOURS: Victoria State Champion: 2006, 2008, 2009.
CLUB HONOURS: Knock-Out Cup winner: 2008 [Eastbourne]; Elite Shield winner: 2009 [Eastbourne].
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 5.63 (EL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Woodward began his UK career with Poole in 2003, making just five appearances in the British League Cup competition that ran only for the one season only. The Aussie then joined Edinburgh for his first full term of British racing in 2004 and was to spend two years with the Scottish club, raising his average to over 7 points per match at Premier League level. He then stepped-up to the Elite League with Eastbourne in 2006 and, from then on, the laid-back speedster made steady progress.

Woodward remained in the Eagles’ colours for a fourth successive campaign in 2009, when a neat style, together with the ability to conjure decent starts and good speed meant he assumed a second-string role in the side’s septet. He was to remain ever-present over the course of the club’s thirty-six official matches, scoring 236 points to yield a solid real-time average of 6.64.

Late in December, the Eastbourne management confirmed that he would once again represent them in 2010. And, upon his arrival back in the UK from Down Under in February, Woodward was handed the Eagles’ captaincy; a singular honour which saw the Aussie’s name ranked alongside such club legends as Martin Dugard, Gordon Kennett, Nicki Pedersen and David Norris to name but a few.

The Aussie made his usual solid start to the campaign, but required a spell on the sidelines after tangling with Wolverhampton’s Fredrik Lindgren in heat five of a league fixture at Arlington on 17 June. The coming together resulted in the Eagles’ skipper going over the safety fence and, although he raced on for a time in the match-up, he was unable to take his place in his last ride.

It was subsequently confirmed that he had suffered a hefty knock to his left thigh, which swelled heavily and necessitated treatment for blood clots. He eventually returned to action in a home league match versus Poole on 15 July and celebrated by notching 12+2 points. And he was to clinch a first-ever top-flight maximum when he totalled a whopping 15+3 points from six starts against Wolverhampton in the first leg of the Knock-Out Cup semi-final at Arlington on 10 October.

Woodward finished the campaign with a healthy real-time average of 7.26, having totalled 218 points from thirty-one appearances in the Eagles’ colours. And, on 6 January, the East Sussex club was pleased to announce that the popular Aussie would be remaining on board for a sixth straight campaign in 2011.

WORRALL, Richie
DATE OF BIRTH: 23 September 1991, St Helens, Merseyside.
BRITISH CAREER: (2011) Newcastle, Scunthorpe II/Sheffield II.
CLUB HONOURS: Premier Shield winner: 2011 [Newcastle]; League Championship winner: 2011 [Scunthorpe II/Sheffield II].
RIDER LINKS: Twin brother of Steve Worrall (born: 23 September 1991, St Helens, Merseyside).
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 3.00 (PL), 3.00 (NL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Richie is slightly the elder of the two racing twins, having been born at 1.17 p.m. on 23 September 1991; his sibling arrived just two minutes later. Almost nineteen years later, in 2010, he followed his brother into Scunthorpe’s National League side, although all his appearances for the Saints were classed as those of a guest due to him never being officially named in the team declaration. Despite that – and on occasion filling the No. 8 role – he was handed the team captaincy on more than one occasion.

The former moto-cross rider made his first appearance for the side in a league fixture at the Isle of Wight on 29 June, when he netted 2+1 points from three outings. Aside from representing Scunthorpe on five occasions, he also appeared in three National League meetings for Bournemouth, beginning with a match at King’s Lynn on 12 September.

He made three appearances for Newport Hornets, too. Two of these were in the National Trophy, with the other one occurring in the Knock-Out Cup. The first of his matches for the Welsh outfit was in a NT fixture at Weymouth on 24 September. Four late-season appearances also came his way for Buxton, as he helped the Hitmen secure victory in both the Knock-Out Cup final and the Play-Off final, scoring an impressive total of 25 points.

On 4 December, it was announced that the entertaining leg-trailer would fill one of Newcastle’s reserve berths, alongside Kyle Newman, in 2011; the Diamonds having agreed a loan deal with Worrall’s parent club, Scunthorpe. And, on 10 February, it was also confirmed that he would represent the Saints at NL level. It was later revealed that the NL team would be a joint venture with Sheffield and that home fixtures would be split between the two tracks.

WORRALL, Steven (Steve)
DATE OF BIRTH: 23 September 1991, St Helens, Merseyside.
BRITISH CAREER: (2010) Scunthorpe, Scunthorpe II; (2011) Scunthorpe, Scunthorpe II/Sheffield II.
CLUB HONOUR: League Championship winner: 2011 [Scunthorpe II/Sheffield II].
RIDER LINKS: Twin brother of Richie Worrall (born: 23 September 1991, St Helens, Merseyside).
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 3.00 (PL), 5.74 (NL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: In February 2010, Scunthorpe Saints announced the signing of the former moto-cross rider to fill one of their reserve berths in the new campaign. St Helens born and bred Worrall, who had been racing moto-cross since the age of seven, saw speedway on television and decided to try the sport on the club’s mini-track in 2009.

After enjoying the experience, he attended the practices at the Eddie Wright Raceway and progressed through the club’s amateur meetings towards the end of the season. Highlighting just how far he had progressed in a short space of time – in only his third meeting – he mixed-it with established National League riders Paul Starke and Mattie Bates, together with fellow Saints’ signing Ashley Birks, in the Open Class ‘A’ final on 12 December.

That came hot on the heels of a second-place finish in the ‘A’ final of the Support Class at the Eddie Wright Raceway on 29 August, and a brace of victories in both the ‘A’ and ‘B’ Support Class finals on 18 October. And, quite incredibly, after riding in just two National League meetings for Scunthorpe, Worrall appeared in the British Under-21 qualifying round at Mildenhall on 11 April and scooped a brilliant second-place finish, behind Scott Campos.

His form for the Saints was impressive, too, with an early high spot being a return of 11+1 points in an away league fixture at Plymouth on 21 May. His efforts were to be rewarded at the tail-end of June, when Scunthorpe elected to share a reserve berth between him and Gary Irving in their senior team, having released Simon Lambert. However, another change in August saw the Scorpions’ management draft in Jan Graversen to replace Worrall and Irving.

He went on to total 144 points in the Saints’ colours from nineteen matches, which equated to an average of 6.46. Meanwhile, for the senior Scorpions, he rode officially on half-a-dozen occasions, scoring 11 points for an average of 2.43.

On 1 January 2011, Scunthorpe confirmed that Worrall would be in their starting line-up for the new campaign where he would initially join Viktor Bergström in the reserve berths. Having first tried speedway when he attended a mini-track session hosted by Wayne Carter less than two years previously, this cemented his rapid rise through the amateur ranks to a National League reserve berth and experience in the Scorpions side, with his full-time promotion to the Premier League being the next logical step in his speedway education.

It was also confirmed on 10 February that he would again represent the Saints at NL level. It was later revealed that the NL team would be a joint venture with Sheffield and that home fixtures would be split between the two tracks.

At Lakeside on 15 April, Worrall further highlighted his outstanding potential by claiming the runner-up position in the British Under-21 Championship little more than twelve months after his league debut. He finished second only to former Scorpion and 2010 Grand Prix rider Tai Woffinden, whilst Scunthorpe’s new signing and defending champion, Joe Haines, was third. =

WRATHALL, Adam Mark Edward
DATE OF BIRTH: 27 November 1991, Blackpool, Lancashire.
BRITISH CAREER: (2007) Oxford II; (2008-10) Scunthorpe II; (2011) Scunthorpe II/Sheffield II.
CLUB HONOUR: League Championship winner: 2011 [Scunthorpe II/Sheffield II].
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 4.31 (NL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Wrathall sustained multiple, life-threatening injuries in Oxford’s opening Conference Trophy fixture of the 2007 season, at home to Weymouth on 8 April. In heat two, he lost control on the fourth bend and, together with his machine, was flung over the safety fence.

Among other things, he received a broken right leg, broken left thumb, broken bones in his back, bruising to his lungs and head, with some internal bleeding at the back of the brain.

Having eventually recovered, he linked with Scunthorpe’s Conference League outfit the following term and remained with the Lincolnshire side in the re-branded National League in 2009, when he notched 87 points from nineteen official appearances for a 4.77 average (including bonus).

At the season’s end, he flew to Australia to further his experience and, in early February, he was again named in the Saints’ line-up for the 2010 campaign. Having been appointed captain, the Blackpool-based rider was maintaining an average of around 5 points per match, prior to being forced to withdraw from a home league fixture versus Bournemouth on 25 June, after crashing out on the second bend of heat six.

Wrathall sustained an ankle injury and subsequently had it X-rayed at his hometown hospital where a fracture was confirmed. He returned to action for the Saints on 28 August and went on to total fourteen appearances, which yielded 65 points and a 4.93 average.  

Wrathall was part of a five-man party who toured Australia during the British winter, along with Josh Auty, Kyle Howarth, Brendan Johnson and Kyle Newman. And, during the close season, he was again named in the Scunthorpe’s National League line-up for 2011. It was later revealed that the NL team would be a joint venture with Sheffield and that home fixtures would be split between the two tracks.

However, the season began badly for the Lancashire lad when, having been appointed skipper of the side, he crashed on the parade lap of Sheffield Prowlers’ opening league fixture of the campaign at Belle Vue on 23 March, suffering a suspected broken collarbone after high-siding his machine in a practice start. That forced the side to operate the rider replacement facility when the action got underway.

Having returned to action, Wrathall was in the wars again whilst representing Sheffield in a National League match at Stoke on 28 May. He crashed in the initial running of heat four, sustaining hip and shoulder injuries.

WRIGHT, Charles Martin
DATE OF BIRTH: 26 October 1988, Stockport, Cheshire.
BRITISH CAREER: (2004-06) Buxton; (2007) Workington, Buxton; (2008-09) Workington; (2010) Buxton, Redcar; (2011) Workington, Leicester, Belle Vue II.
CLUB HONOURS: Four-Team winner: 2008 [Workington]; Young Shield winner: 2008 [Workington].
RIDER LINKS: Grandson of Jim Yacoby (born: 26 September 1939, Denton, Manchester, Greater Manchester). Brother of fellow rider James Wright (born: 13 June 1986, Stockport, Cheshire).
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 3.38 (PL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Like his elder brother, Wright began his racing career in the grass-track scene, taking his first rides at just six years-of-age. His initial skids on a speedway machine occurred sometime later at King’s Lynn, before he took his Conference League bow with Buxton as a 15-year-old in 2004.

He was to end his debut season with a creditable average in excess of 5 points per match and, the following term, was one of the mainstays of the team and added over a point to his statistical figure as he missed only one official meeting all year. The 2006 campaign didn’t start well, however, as Wright was injured in a fall at Belle Vue’s Press Day, causing him to sit out several months of the term.

In fact, such was the extent of his injuries that he didn’t resume racing until August, but he started with a bang as he notched-up successive home paid maximums against Sittingbourne and Cleveland in Conference Shield encounters. In total, he was to spend four seasons on board with the Hitmen, the last of which also saw him combine his duties with Premier League Workington, in 2007.

Remaining with the Comets on a full-time basis in 2008, the youngster continued to develop and was an obvious starter in the Cumbrian side the following term. However, he was injured in Workington’s away league match at Glasgow on 31 May. This occurred after team-mate Adrian Rymel had started heat eleven off a 15-metre handicap and quickly caught home rider Mitchell Davey, before colliding with the Australian as he attempted to forge a route through on the fourth bend.

That sent Davey into the path of Wright, who was thrown 20-feet down the home straight. He sustained bruising to the heels and a badly damaged wrist; it was the latter of these that was to cause the most problems and, after missing over two months of action, a revised team declaration in August saw him replaced in the Comets’ line-up by vastly experienced Welshman, Phil Morris.

Unable to return to the saddle, Wright’s wrist was to keep on swelling up due to ligament damage, which also led to him suffering from arthritis. The upshot was an operation in January 2010, which cut some of the nerves in the wrist in an effort to kill the continuous pain. The success rate was given only as 50-50, but the surgery definitely worked and the Stockport-born racer was quickly able to get back to a more normal routine.

Although there was some interest from Redcar, nothing concrete materialized and – without a team berth in the Premier League – he was named as the final member of Buxton’s 1-7 in early April, as he made a return to his first club in British speedway’s third tier.

His form was good for the Hitmen and, in mid-June, this finally did lead to a return to the PL with Redcar as a replacement for Gary Irving. With Wright ineligible to continue racing in the NL due to having a PL average in excess of 4 points per match, he was replaced in the Buxton side at the start of the following month by Jonathan Bethell.

Wright had ridden in eleven matches for the Hitmen, with his tally of 91 points equating to an average of 9.27. The highlight at home was a fine 15-point maximum versus Plymouth in the National Trophy on 20 June, whilst on the road his best performance was notching 11 points from four starts against Dudley in Buxton’s first league match of the season at Wolverhampton’s Monmore Green Stadium on 13 April.      

Regrettably, the Stockport-born rider was involved in a high-speed crash during Redcar’s final league fixture of the season at Sheffield on 26 August. That occurred in heat fourteen, when an engine failure on the third bend of lap three caused him to fall heavily.

The end of the handlebars went through his race-suit and caused a deep cut just millimetres from the femoral artery in his right leg. Although he was quickly released from hospital, Wright was left feeling groggy but was nonetheless fortunate that his artery had remained intact or it was said he could have been dead within minutes.

With his campaign at an end, he had scored 55 points from fourteen appearances for Redcar, which equated to a 4.39 average. His personal highlight for the Bears was a tally of 8+2 points from six rides out of the often-difficult No. 2 position against former club Workington in a league fixture on 12 August. Away from the South Tees Motorsports Park, his highest tally was 9+1 points, again from half-a-dozen starts in the No. 2 slot, just two days beforehand at King’s Lynn.

Early in February, Workington named Wright as the final piece in their team-building jigsaw for 2011, as he re-joined the Derwent Park club after a years’ absence. In so doing, he also re-linked with his elder brother, James. He started the season pretty well and was maintaining an average of over 5 points per match, when he crashed out of heat six during the Comets’ league match at Newport on 29 April, sustaining a leg injury.

That meant a quick return to the side for Gary Irving as a guest replacement for the following evening’s return encounter with the Welsh outfit at Derwent Park, the rider having only just lost his place in the declared line-up following Kenny Ingalls’ return from injury. Wright soon resumed in action for the Comets, however.

His scoring was to tail-off, though, and the Workington management took the decision to release him from their line-up prior to a home match against Somerset on 4 June. Three days later, Belle Vue Colts announced the signing of Wright as a temporary replacement for injured No. 1 Byron Bekker, who had cracked his shoulder blade the previous week.

In so doing, Wright became the third member of his family to link with Belle Vue, following his grandfather, Jim Yacoby, and elder brother, James. And, just forty-eight hours after the Manchester club’s announcement, Wright was also drafted into the Leicester side as a replacement for Jamie Courtney.

He subsequently made his Lions’ debut in a league match at Redcar on 9 June, scoring 9 points. And he belatedly made his first appearance for the Colts in a league encounter at his former Buxton home ten days later, netting a superb 15-point maximum.

His stint with Leicester wasn’t to last for long, though, since both he and fellow reserve John Oliver were released following a home defeat against table-topping Glasgow on 20 August, which saw Wright net just 3 points from four rides. He was subsequently replaced by Swede Viktor Bergström.

WRIGHT, James Philip
DATE OF BIRTH: 13 June 1986, Stockport, Cheshire.
BRITISH CAREER: (2002) Buxton; (2003) Buxton, Belle Vue; (2004) Workington, Buxton; (2005-07) Workington, Belle Vue; (2008) Swindon; (2009-10) Belle Vue; (2011) Workington, Birmingham.
MAJOR HONOURS: Conference League Riders’ Champion: 2004; Premier League Riders’ Champion: 2007.
CLUB HONOURS: Knock-Out Cup winner: 2002 [Buxton]; Four-Team Championship winner: 2006 [Workington]; Elite Shield winner: 2008 [Swindon].
RIDER LINKS: Grandson of Jim Yacoby (born: 26 September 1939, Denton, Manchester, Greater Manchester). Brother of fellow rider Charles Wright (born: 26 October 1988, Stockport, Cheshire).
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 7.82 (PL), 4.69 (EL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Wright certainly has a speedway pedigree, as he is the grandson of former Belle Vue, Bradford and Liverpool speedster Jim Yacoby. And his younger sibling, Charles, is also a rider, too, having followed his brother through the ranks, initially at Conference League level. As a teenager, some of James’ first tentative steps on the speedway ladder occurred at a training school run by Malcolm Holloway at Swindon.

Having made excellent progress, Wright broke into the Buxton side in 2002, appearing in thirty-two official matches and scoring 236 points for an impressive first-season average of 6.63. Indeed, he played a part as the Peak District club claimed their first piece of major silverware, helping them to defeat Rye House in the final of the Knock-Out Cup in October.

He made further strides with the Hitmen in 2003 and upped his average to over 9 points per match, having recorded in excess of 500 points. Wright also first appeared for Belle Vue in the one-off British League Cup competition, representing the Manchester side in seven such matches.

A move into the Premier League with Workington followed for the Stockport-born rider in 2004, while he also continued to hone his skills at Buxton. For the Comets, he enjoyed a productive term, netting 231.5 points from forty-nine appearances for a 5.50 figure, as his side finished second to Hull in the final Premier League standings. Aside form that, at Conference level, he put together a superb sequence of form for the Hitmen to push his average well above the 10-point mark.

On the individual front, Wright produced a blockbuster performance to lift the Conference League Riders’ Championship at Rye House on 28 August. On the night, he was a cut above the rest of the field, producing several sublime back straight passes on his way to a winning 14-point total.

Remaining with Workington in 2005, he also filled a ‘doubling up’ position with Belle Vue in British speedway’s top tier. For the Comets, he increased his average to 7.51 and this saw him occupy second place in the side’s end-of-season statistics, behind club legend Carl Stonehewer. He also helped the Cumbrian outfit to reach the Premier Trophy final, but there was heartache when they lost 107-76 on aggregate to Rye House. Meanwhile, for the top-flight Aces, he rode in just four meetings.

He was to continue representing both Workington and Belle Vue in 2006 and 2007. In the former year – aside from moving up to the No. 1 position in their averages – there was silverware for the Comets in the shape of the Four-Team Championship, with Wright playing a starring role in the event that was staged at their own Derwent Park racing strip on 7 October. Meanwhile, with the Aces, he enjoyed a fine year to attain a 4.79 average, having bagged 181 points from forty-two meetings.

The 2007 campaign saw Wright record 410 points from thirty-seven appearances to post an excellent 9.53 average for the Comets, as he retained top spot in their figures and was also voted Rider of the Year by the Workington Supporters’ Club. There was further glory along the way when he caught the eye at Swindon on 30 September, romping to victory ahead of a class field in the Premier League Riders’ Championship.

In the UK’s highest sphere, his advancement continued as he plugged away determinedly for the Aces, appearing in thirty-one matches to achieve an impressive 5.39 average. After the conclusion of the season, on 22 November, Swindon announced that they had acquired his services for a first full-time term of Elite League racing; the Wiltshire club admitted that his superb performance in the PLRC at their Abbey Stadium raceway had been a major factor in the decision to sign him.

Wright was to remain ever-present for the Robins throughout forty-one official matches that yielded a 5.55 average, prior to returning to Belle Vue in 2009, when the elder of the two racing brothers looked to continue his development.

A popular rider due to his never-say-die attitude and an exciting riding style, these attributes certainly came to the fore on 10 August when, having dropped to a reserve berth, he tallied a career-best top-flight haul of 17+1 points in a league fixture versus Coventry at Kirkmanshulme Lane.  

Wright began the 2010 campaign on fire, taking victory ahead of home favourite Ryan Fisher in the prestigious Scottish Open Championship at Edinburgh on 19 March, in a meeting held over from the previous year. His good form continued in Workington’s 40th Anniversary meeting on 27 March, when he notched-up another excellent first-place, ahead of André Compton, Kauko Nieminen and Craig Cook.

Domestically, with Belle Vue once again, he continued to sparkle and, on 26 April, notched his first-ever unbeaten tally in the Elite League, scoring 9+3 points in the Aces’ home match versus Lakeside, as he and skipper Hans Andersen formed a devastating partnership.  

Wright was involved in an on-track accident on 4 July, whilst representing Hungarian side Miskolc in the Polish League during a home match against Gdańsk. He was left black and blue after taking a real beating in a heavy fall, but fortunately didn’t suffer any broken bones.

An abscess on a tooth at the same time also caused excruciating agony and when the rider returned to action for Belle Vue in an Elite League encounter against Coventry in Manchester on 12 July, he was full of painkillers.

At the campaign’s end, Wright was just one match short of being an ever-present for Belle Vue in official competitions, his thirty-three appearances having produced 170 points and a 5.73 average. Aside from his early-season paid maximum against Lakeside, his highest tallies came in a home league fixture versus Eastbourne on 12 April, when he scored 12+4 points from six starts; meanwhile, on the road, he notched 13 points from six rides at his former home, Swindon, in a league encounter on 22 April.

On 14 December, Wright was revealed as Workington’s new No. 1 for the 2011 campaign by Comets’ club owner Keith Denham, the rider having jumped at the opportunity to return to the team where he began his Premier League career in 2004. And, on 6 January, Birmingham named him as a ‘doubling-up’ rider ahead of embarking on their first term of Elite League racing at Perry Barr.

There was also confirmation that Wright was an asset of the Brummies, as club owner Tony Mole had maintained his registration following his departure from Workington at the tail-end of 2007. Therefore, the 2011 campaign would see him race for the Cumbrians on loan, as well as his parent club.

Keeping busy proved a tonic for Wright’s form, this being emphasised when he carded an excellent 14+1 points for Birmingham in a top-flight fixture at his former club, Swindon, on 21 April. And although he could only muster 4+2 points in the return match at Perry Barr the following evening, he went on to post an excellent 15-point maximum for Workington in the Comets’ 57-36 win over their oldest rivals, Berwick, on Easter Monday [25 April].

Although Wright was to average over 5 points a match with the Brummies, both him and Kevin Wölbert were to lose their shared position within the side in July, when the club decided to retain the services of Ulrich Østergaard for the remainder of the season. That followed the Dane’s excellent spell as cover whilst Aleš Dryml recovered from injury.

Shortly afterwards, he had an enforced spell on the sidelines after losing control of his machine in the initial running of heat fifteen of the Comets’ Knock-Out Cup encounter at Sheffield on 21 July. As a result, he clattered into team-mate Rusty Harrison, suffering damaged neck muscles and ligaments.

Despite maintaining an average in excess of 8 points per match, Wright was released by Workington and replaced by Simon Nielsen. He was immediately snapped-up by Somerset, however, to replace the off-form Travis McGowan and made a sensational start to life in their colours in the Rebels’ league win over Leicester at the Oak Tree Arena on 2 September – including a fine heat fifteen win to secure maximum points for his new side. Indeed, Wright found a small gap on the outside to go past Magnus Karlsson and guest Shane Parker on the last lap to leave the final score at 51-43, enough for 3 points on the night.