WITCHES WIN AFTER BRUISING BATTLE
IPSWICH maintained their winning start to 2025 with a 48-42 success at Oxford – despite a stunning show from Spires racer Erik Riss.
The German, who previously rode for the Witches, racked up an incredible 20-point score in the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership encounter, dropping his only point in Heat 1 to Jason Doyle.
The heroics from Riss enabled the home side to close the gap to two points with three races remaining, but Doyle – who scored a paid maximum from four rides – combined with Emil Sayfutdinov for a 5-1 in Heat 13 to give the Witches breathing space.
Doyle (11+1) and flying reserve Dan Thompson (10) both walked away from a heavy crash in Heat 11 which saw the Spires’ Luke Killeen disqualified, and Sayfutdinov also came to grief in Heat 15 without injury.
Ipswich boss Ritchie Hawkins said: “A really hard-fought, tough meeting, it was a slog on the track for the boys individually dealing with track conditions. It was a slog for us on the score front, but we kept working hard and got through it in the end and managed to take two points.
“We have got the result, and it shows what a solid side we are, we had very few last places again. There were a lot of crashes, and I am delighted that everyone has walked away from them. There were a few bent bikes and a few issues but overall, it is a very positive start.
“Lasty, it was nice to see Erik, who was with us for a couple of seasons, riding as good as we know he can. It was a great performance from him for Oxford.”
Riss said: “I had a good feeling about today. Last week wasn’t so good for me, but I learned some things that I had to do. I also had some issues with my clutch, so I spent the weekend practicing and trying out different things.
“It all paid off, because tonight my starts were good and the bike set-up was just right.
“Our performance tonight was okay because Ipswich are a strong team. But we know we are capable of more as a team. Once we all get going, we can beat anyone around here – and that includes Ipswich.”
Watch the action from Heat 6 (courtesy of OXFORD SPEEDWAY TV | https://livestream.oxfordspeedway.club)
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Photo credit: STEVE EDMUNDS
