A promising start for the Belle Vue Aces ended in a 45-45 draw on Bank Holiday Monday, May 6 after the visiting Poole Pirates chipped away at their 16-point lead to force a last-heat decider.
The Rentruck Aces were piling in the heat wins early doors, with a 5-1 to start things off in Heat 1 complemented by a series of strong performances that gave them a comfortable lead.
But the Pirates got their second wind at the mid-way point in proceedings, with two consecutive 5-1s swinging their way in Heats 9 and 10 and all but cutting Belle Vue’s advantage in half.
They battle hard to keep their opponents at bay, holding them to three drawn heats and maintaining an 8-point gap with two races to go, until Poole unleashed their secret weapon: Brady Kurtz.
The in-form Aussie inspired his side with a perfectly executed tactical substitute ride in Heat 14, and a big 5-1 in Heat 15 to dash the Rentruck Aces’ hopes of three league points and an overall win.
Team captain Max Fricke said: “I must admit, it was quite a surprise to us all that it came down to a last heat decider, especially given how strongly we started off the afternoon to be leading by 16.
“Fair play to Poole, they’re a strong team and they came good in the latter half of the meeting. For us, it was extremely frustrating to let that lead slip because we didn’t want anything less than a win.
“Things just clicked into place for them and no matter how hard we tried we just didn’t have the speed to keep up. We need to put this to rest now and knuckle down for the next one.”
The Rentruck Aces are on the road to Peterborough this Thursday, May 9 before Race Off 2 of the Speedway of Nations lands at Manchester’s National Speedway Stadium next weekend, May 11.
Then, triple British U-21 champion Robert Lambert and his King’s Lynn Stars make their way to the NSS on Thursday, May 16 for more Premiership action against the Rentruck Aces.
Tickets on sale at the stadium box office on race night or secure yours today at www.bellevue-speedway.com.
