Round 3 of the men’s Battle of Britain Team Series saw The North and Scotland claim victory, while Chris Timms of Birmingham won the third round of the Elite GP in an exciting weekend of cycle speedway racing.
Men’s Battle of Britain
Four strong teams took to the grid with the South and South West looking to continue their dominance in the competition but with the return of the Midlands and the North and Scotland, it wouldn’t be an easy day for the competition leaders.
It was the Midlands pair of Jamie Chittock and Josh Brooke who romped away from the tapes in the opening heat, leaving the South and South West pairing of Adam Bennet and Lee Galley in the dust to take a 7-3.
A returning Pierce Bacon (North) took a relatively easy win in heat two, leaving Ipswich’s own Ben Clarke (SEandE) to pick up second place.
The North showed their intentions in the following heat with Kris Ramadan and Reece Pollitt taking seven points from South and South West pair Chris and Matt Davis.
An on form Paul Heard took the second win of the day for the Midlands in heat four as Lewis Brinkoff (SEandE) was unable to find a way around.
Pavel Idziorak (North) took the first of his two wins in heat five, keeping Chris Timms (The Midlands) at arm’s length and again in heat eight, holding off Ben Clarke to set the North up in a strong position.
Heat nine saw the North’s Kris Ramsden and Reece Pollitt again secure seven points against the (SandSW) and with Mike Baldock taking the win.
Going into the break the North were arguably on their way to a first win in the 2022 competition.
Ben Mould (SandSW) rallied in heat 15 to take his second win of the match but another solid ride from Charlie Parr (SEandE) and Ash Hill kept the match wide open.
Another seven points for the North and Scotland in heat 19 all but wrapped the match up, but a couple of 7-3 heat wins in heats 20 and 21 for the South East and East took the match to the final heat. Although Ben Clarke took the chequered flag, Lewis Foxly and Reece Pollitt ensured the North did just enough for the match win.
North and Scotland 69 Points
South East and Eastern 65 Points
The Midlands 59 Points
South and South Wales 45 Points
Elite GP
In the third round of the men’s Elite GP, it was Chris Timms (Birmingham) who scored a 20-point maximum which saw him take the lead in the season’s standings.
Timms overtook Ben Clarke (Ipswich), who had to be content with third on the day after a run off with Ben Mould (Horspath) and Paul Heard (Birmingham). Mould and Heard finished second and fourth respectively, while Josh Brooke (Gt Blakenham) secured fifth after a run off with Ash Hill (Ipswich).
It was solid starts by Timms, Mould and Clarke, who took his second win in heat five from Mould, holding off the current World and European Champion then easing away to claim the four points.
Timms took his second win of the day in heat six in the re-run after Brooke was excluded. Heard couldn’t find a way around his Birmingham teammate and rolled in second.
A third win for Timms in the ninth heat saw him heading up the leader board after 12 heats – one point to the good of Mould and Clarke who were both on 11.
Heard took back-to-back wins in the 12th and 13th heat, with Clarke dropping another point. Close racing in the next heat saw Timms take another win, although it was a close affair to the chequered flag.
With four heats remaining it was Timms who, with 16 points, had the day in the bag, wrapping things up in the 20th with his fifth win of the match.
1. Chris Timms 20 Points
2. Ben Mould 17 Points
3. Ben Clarke 17 Points
4. Paul Heard 17 Points
5. Josh Brooke 15 points
5. Ash Hill 15 Points
