Speedway: Start of Sheffield's season put back as Poole clash ditched

Sheffield, who topped the Premiership table last season, were expected to start their 2025 campaign with a trip to Dorset for what it was thought would have been the first competitive meeting between the clubs since the 1990s, after the 2024 Championship winners were invited to take part in the competition.

But today Poole have announced that they have pulled out, meaning the meeting, which was pencilled in for March 26, will not now happen. It also means the planned April 17 return leg at Owlerton is off.

Poole said in a statement: “Poole Speedway has made the decision not to participate in the 2025 Premiership Knockout Cup. While the invitation was both unexpected and exciting, several logistical and financial challenges have made it unviable at this time.

“A key consideration was the significant cost of bringing top riders to the UK for a standalone competition. Additionally, competing in the Premiership KO Cup would require us to start our fixtures much earlier than planned, which isn’t ideal for our overall schedule.

We have also reached out to potential new sponsors, and while there has been some interest in supporting the Pirates for a potential Premiership return, the uptake has not been sufficient to make participation in this competition feasible for 2025.”

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It means that Sheffield speedway will now start their season against Birmingham, in a fixture which will also see the return to Owlerton of former Tigers fan favourite Tobiasz Musielak, in the visitors’ colours in the Rowe Motor Oil Premiership on Thursday, April 3.

Tigers said today: “Sheffield have also been informed that they will now receive a bye through to the Semi-Finals of the Premiership Knockout Cup after Poole decided not to take up their invitation into the competition for ‘various reasons’.”

Sheffield are currently the Knockout Cup Cup holders, having beaten Ipswich over two legs last season.