Leicester welcomes back Mads Korneliussen, Jason Doyle and Nicolai Klindt for their Elite League fixture against the Belle Vue Aces at the Jordan Road Surfacing Stadium on Saturday.
All three missed the team’s last match at home to Swindon which coincided with a qualifying round of the Grand Prix competition in Poland.
It will be the first occasion since Leicester faced the Lakeside Hammers on 12th April that the club has not had to rely on guest riders for a home fixture and Nicolai Klindt makes his home debut after signing for the Rapid Solicitors Lions last month. Whilst Promoter David Hemsley was looking forward to a settled period following a spate of injuries it has been an uncertain few days for the club following news that the Lions match at Birmingham on Wednesday had been cancelled.
As the West Midlands club were due to race in the return fixture at Leicester on Saturday it moved Hemsley to have a contingency plan in place should the Brummies’ be unable to fulfil their commitment as David explains: “Following the cancellation of our fixture at Perry Barr last Wednesday that did cast a large doubt over the return match at our stadium. So we had to have some sort of contingency plan should the worse come to the worse whilst we awaited official news from the British Speedway Promoters’ Association as to the situation. So knowing that Belle Vue wanted to re-arrange the fixture scheduled for 14th August at Leicester we began a dialogue with them and the outcome was an agreement for the Aces to replace Birmingham. We have to thank Belle Vue for being prepared to step in at such a late stage and also their riders who no doubt had to re-arrange their diaries to be here.”
Whilst Leicester are back to full strength the date switch has left Belle Vue without Matej Zagar who is committed to riding for Slovenia in a qualifying round of the World Team Cup. In his place the Aces Team Manager has recruited Coventry’s Chris Harris as a replacement. The Grand Prix rider has already ridden twice at Leicester and both times he finished on the winning side. “It is an astute move by Belle Vue who no doubt have studied riders form at Leicester before choosing Zagar’s replacement and Harris fits the bill perfectly” commented Hemsley.
At reserve the visitors have been forced into two further changes as Stefan Nielsen is unfit following a crash three weeks ago and Lee Payne is required by his National League club, Stoke Potters. In their place Belle Vue have gone for a similar policy of horses for courses and include two of the Lion Cubs team members, Dan Greenwood and Tom Perry, who lost his place in the senior side last month, but has continued to captain the juniors.
When the two clubs last met at Leicester in early May the Lions came out on top by 50 points to 43 and so far it has been a imbalanced season for Belle Vue who have only ridden six matches at home but have completed twelve on their travels. As a result the club currently sit eighth in the Elite League table and whilst their home form is impressive having won five matches by the maximum three points with Lakeside the only team so far to leave the Greyhound Stadium with a point the Aces have yet to win away from home.
Teams
Leicester: 1. Jason Doyle, 2. Simon Stead, 3. Mads Korneliussen, 4. Nicolai Klindt, 5. Krzysztof Buczkowski, 6. Josh Bates and 7. Max Clegg
Belle Vue: 1. Chris Harris, 2. Richie Worrall, 3. Scott Nicholls, 4. Michael Palm Toft, 5. Craig Cook, 6. Dan Greenwood and 7. Tom Perry
