Scott Nicholls collected his fifth British Championship with a hard fought and well deserved victory on a night of terrific action at the Abbey Stadium.
Thursday 29th May 2008 - British Final
1st Scott Nicholls
2nd Edward Kennett
3rd Tai Woffinden
4th Chris Harris
Qualifying scores
Chris Harris 2 3 3 3 3 – 14
Scott Nicholls 3 3 EF 3 3 – 12
James Wright 0 2 3 3 3 – 11
Tai Woffinden 1 3 3 1 3 – 11
Simon Stead 3 1 2 2 2 – 10
Edward Kennett 3 2 2 1 1 9
Leigh Lanham 2 3 0 2 1 8
Lewis Bridger 2 1 F 3 2 - 8
Adam Roynon 2 0 2 1 1 – 6
Daniel King 1 2 1 1 1 – 6
David Howe 3 EF 2 0 0 – 5
William Lawson 0 1 0 2 2 – 5
Richard Hall 1 2 1 0 0 – 4
Chris Neath 1 0 1 2 0 – 4
Ricky Ashworth 0 0 3 0 0 – 3
Referee: Peter Clarke
Scott Nicholls collected his fifth British Championship with a hard fought and well deserved victory on a night of terrific action at the Abbey Stadium.
The Eastbourne rider endured just a single blip over the course of the evening, an engine failure in heat ten, but responded well with three successive heat wins.
Other than that machinery problem Nicholls had things his own way and the Grand Prix rider demonstrated flawless gating skills in the all important final to re-gain the crown Chris Harris took from him in 2007.
Harris himself was characteristically entertaining throughout the night as he just dropped a single point from his five qualifying rides. However, the popular Cornishman didn’t conjure a decent get away in the final race and on a slickening track was unable to stamp his authority on the race.
His eventual fourth place finish wasn’t perhaps a fair reflection of his performance over the course of the evening.
Edward Kennet collected second place on the night and is therefore through to the British Grand Prix in Cardiff as a Wild Card entry. Kennet looked far from his best in the qualifying heats but sprung into life during the latter stages and will now line up alongside the World’s best on June 28th at the Millennium stadium
A healthy Blunsdon attendance were treated to an array of fantastic speedway on a race track that offered oodles of traction and several racing lines.
This really was a memorable occasion as a refreshingly tenacious blend of youth and experience silenced the doubters who thrive in writing the requiem of British speedway.
Whilst the individual triumphs of Nicholls and Kennet deserve significant praise it was the scintillating performance of seventeen year old Tai Woffinden that really set tongues wagging.
The youngster demonstrated maturity and composure way beyond his years as he progressed through a tense semi final and rode superbly to repel the challenge of Chris Harris in the final race.
Woffinden will now assume the role of first reserve at the British Grand Prix at the Millennium Stadium.
The home fans were kept on their toes by the sturdy performance of Swindon rider James Wright who rode well to earn a spot in the semi final.
However the youngster was unable to progress further after a poor start from the gate one position but will nevertheless be content with his contribution.
Other notable performances came from Simon Stead who just fell short of a place in the final and also Lewis Bridger who perhaps deserved slightly more from his night’s work.
As did the tenacious Adam Roynon who showcased bundles of speed and natural talent as he served up plenty of top class entertainment for the Blunsdon crowd.
This was Nicholls night though and the experienced British international looked in control throughout. He will however of noticed the emerging crop of youngsters, Tai Woffinden in particular, who are beginning to show signs of significant progression.
