PREVIEW: BRITISH YOUTH (500cc/250cc), BELLE VUE

THE seventh and final round of the 2023 British Youth Championship takes place at Belle Vue this evening (Friday, 6pm) prior to the Colts’ NDL fixture with the Edinburgh Academy.

With the 125cc classes already been completed, this is the last round for the 500cc and 250cc classes which will see a new British Champion crowned in both groups.

Ashton Boughen leads the series in the 500cc class and needs to beat the total score of one of the other seven competitors tonight to claim his first British title, whilst for William Cairns with only three 250cc riders in tonight’s event he will be crowned British Champion after competing in his first heat.

As well as the British title the race is still on for the silver and bronze positions in each class, with Jody Scott looking set to claim the runner-up spot in the 500s, whilst the battle for bronze is between Ashton Vale and Sonny Springer with Vale currently holding a seven-point advantage over his nearest rival.

In the 250cc, it is all but guaranteed for Jamie Etherington to claim the silver medal and Cooper Rushen the bronze.

British Youth boss Neil Vatcher said: “Again, this has been a fantastic series with so much young talent coming through, and again it has been a pleasure working with all the riders and their families, all of whom have shown great commitment to the Championship.

“It does seem a bit strange that we are finishing the series so early in the summer; however, we have done well to have seven rounds across the three months of May, June and July and it has been fun.

“I would like to thank the tracks and promotions of the clubs who again have hosted this year’s Championship: Glasgow, Belle Vue, Edinburgh, Scunthorpe, Birmingham, Redcar and Workington, and also all the British Youth Series sponsors for their continued support – Nuneaton Speedway Supporters Club, Wessex Marine, AGF Plant, Brian Royle, Friends of Speedway, Foxbury Motors, Ignite Insurance Brokers Ltd, Northern Scaffolding Solutions, Rentruck, In memory of the Speedway Nut and Gordon Pairman.

“Even though this series is coming to an end, some of the British Youth riders still have events taking place in Europe, some will be involved in the re-staging of the British Under 19 Final, and the Young Lions are intending on running some training camps during the school holidays, so there’s still plenty to look forward to in 2023.”