Dan & Ben represent The Gladiators
Dan Thompson and Ben Barker will represent The Plymouth ProwPark Gladiators in the Championship Pairs which takes place at Oxford Speedway tonight (Friday).
All nine Cab Direct Championship clubs are represented in the major event which has its traditional place on the calendar the day before the British Grand Prix at Cardiff.
Glasgow are defending champions and have recent signing Anders Rowe joining skipper Chris Harris, who was part of their winning combination last year, whilst the hosts track a formidable combination of Sam Masters and Scott Nicholls.
Oxford manager Peter Schroeck said: “I’m sure an amazing night is ahead. I am delighted that Oxford Stadium is staging the Championship Pairs for a third successive season.
“It’s fabulous for this stadium to stage big events like this – it’s great for Kevin (Boothby), for Jamie (Courtney), for everyone involved with our club.
“The last two stagings have been hotly contested and this year’s line-up looks better than ever. It’s a very tough line-up and no-one can be under-estimated.
“I believe Oxford is a very fair racetrack and that gives everyone a chance of success. Of course, I wish to see Scott Nicholls and Sam Masters win it for the Monarch Oxford Cheetahs and that would be terrific for our own supporters. But every club can start their Cardiff weekend in style.”
All nine pairs take four rides over an 18-heat format, with 4-3-2-0 scoring, and the top four pairs then progress to the semi-finals and Final where the highest-scoring pair in each race are the winners.
Gates will open at Cowley at 5.30pm, and between 5.45-6.25pm the pits will be open to supporters. The parade will take place at 7.20pm with the first race at 7.30pm.
Tickets are on sale on the Oxford Speedway website at https://oxfordspeedway.club/tickets/ .
Tickets are priced at adults £22, children (11-15) £5 and under-11s free. Free car parking is available at the Unipart car park while availability lasts. A reminder that Oxford Speedway is online ticket sales only – tickets remain on sale on the website until the start-time of the meeting.
Line-up:
PLYMOUTH: Ben Barker and Dan Thompson
BERWICK: Lewis Kerr and Drew Kemp
GLASGOW: Chris Harris and Anders Rowe
REDCAR: Charles Wright and Danny King
EDINBURGH: Josh Pickering and Paco Castagna
WORKINGTON: Troy Batchelor and Antti Vuolas
SCUNTHORPE: Michael Palm Toft and Kyle Howarth
POOLE: Richard Lawson and Ben Cook
OXFORD: Scott Nicholls and Sam Masters
*LIVE STREAMING: https://watch.britishspeedway.co.uk