Freddie Lindgren opened the 2011 season with a 15-point maximum

Wolverhampton took a 46-44 advantage over Birmingham Brummies in a competitive first leg of the BBC WM Trophy at Perry Barr on Thursday.

On their return to top-level speedway after a 28-year absence, the Brummies led for most of the meeting.

Wolves relied heavily on their big three, Freddie Lindgren, Tai Woffinden and Peter Karlsson, who shared 11 heat wins between them.

Lindgren and Karlsson earned a 5-1 in the final heat for a Wolves win.

The BBC WM Trophy is offering a first chance for the Brummies and Wolves supporters to see their teams for the 2011 Elite League in competitive action.

Predictions made widely before the meeting that Wolves' strength was loaded towards their top three riders while the Brummies were more even through their line-up were proved true in an intriguing night's racing in front of a very large crowd.

Wolves riders won eight of the first 10 heats, but on each occasion the points were shared as the Brummies filled the minor placings. Maximums in heats three and eight left the Brummies eight points clear.

But a 5-1 from the Lindgren brothers, Freddie and Ludvig, in heat 11 changed the course of the meeting.

The Brummies suffered a setback in heat 14 when reserve Claus Vissing, who had performed strongly to that point, crashed and sustained a suspected broken wrist.

Brummies manager Graham Drury told BBC WM that Vissing's accident was the moment when the meeting got away from them.

"I think the turning point was Claus's injury," said Drury. "We were on a safe 3-3 in that heat and it turned into a 4-2 to them. To hold them to two points, I think that was a good workout for the lads, and we can only improve on this performance I'm sure."

Wolves manager Peter Adams forecast early in the meeting that his team would be strong later in the event, and so it proved.

"That was our strategy, to try to keep pace with them," he told BBC WM afterwards. "We knew we'd have more strength than them in the closing stages, and that's how it turned out. There's a lot more to come from our team. We're encouraged by this."

The second leg of the BBC WM Trophy is at Monmore Green on Monday, 21 March (1930 GMT) and is live on BBC WM.

BIRMINGHAM 44: Ben Barker 9+1, Krzysztof Kasprzak 7+2, Ales Dryml 7+2, Daniel King 7+2, James Wright 6+2, Claus Vissing 5, Daniel Nermark 3+1.

WOLVERHAMPTON 46: Fredrik Lindgren 15, Peter Karlsson 12+1, Tai Woffinden 10, Ricky Wells 5, Ludvig Lindgren 2+1, Tyson Burmeister 2, Ty Proctor 0.

E-mail this to a friend

Printable version