PREVIEW: Massive clash for Cheetahs at Cowley

MONARCH Oxford Cheetahs – already safely into their first Knockout Cup final for 27 years – have a couple of even more important dates this week, as they look to book their place in the Cab Direct Championship play-off final. Cheetahs host Scunthorpe Scorpions in the first leg of the semi-final at Cowley on Wednesday evening (7.30pm) in the biggest meeting at Oxford Stadium since the venue re-opened in 2022.

The second leg takes place at Scunthorpe’s Eddie Wright Raceway on Friday evening. The aggregate winners will progress to the final, where the opposition will be either Poole Pirates or Workington Comets, who are involved in the other semi-final this week.

Cheetahs finished second in the regular Cab Direct Championship table, while Scorpions were third. The play-offs are all-important and will determine the league champions.

While Oxford Speedway have won eight league championships, none of them have been at second tier level, so Cheetahs could create their own slice of history. Cheetahs won have five top-flight titles (1964, 1985, 1986, 1989 and 2001), while Oxford have also won three third-tier championships (1950, 2005 and 2023).

Cheetahs were still be without Jordan Jenkins or Cameron Heeps, who were both injured at Cowley last Wednesday, in the first leg of the KO Cup semi-final against Redcar.

Joe Thompson will guest for Jenkins, while Cheetahs will use rider replacement for Heeps. R/R will operate at No 3, while in-form 17-year-old Ashton Boughen switches to No 4. Connor Coles guests for long-standing injury victim Adam Roynon at No 7, while Jody Scott will line-up at No 8, giving Cheetahs even more options on the night.

Oxford team manager Peter Schroeck said: “We’re up for the two meetings in the Cab Direct Championship play-off semi-final against Scunthorpe. The likes of Sam Masters and Scott Nicholls thrive on big occasions like this.

“Ashton Boughen has been unbelievable over the last few weeks. He only dropped one point over the two legs of the cup semi-final against Redcar and his performance up there in the second leg was just brilliant. He was also flying at Glasgow on Sunday. He’s just full of confidence, and he’s found the right set-up with his engine.  

“After the Monarch Cheetahs did the job at Redcar on Friday, I was a bit emotional and just needed a few moments to myself to take it all in. because I know how much it means to Oxford Speedway to get through to a big final such as the cup final.

“But we now need to brush ourselves off and qualify for the second final as well. This one is even bigger, since the play-offs determine the league champions. But the key is to approach it like a normal meeting – my job is to make sure the lads are still enjoying themselves and having fun, while remaining focused.

“I feel we’ve got the momentum behind us and we kept that up by overcoming early misfortune to push Glasgow all the way in Scotland. Scunthorpe are a good side and it won’t be easy, but we know that we can the job and get through to the play-off final.”

Tickets on sale on the Oxford Speedway website at https://oxfordspeedway.club/tickets/

Admission is available at the early bird price of £20 for all adults, which increases to £22 on Race Day. All under-16s go free. The first thousand adult tickets sold get a free drink (Drink options: Pint, small glass of wine, draught or soft drink).

A reminder that Oxford Speedway is online ticket sales only – tickets remain on sale on the website until the start-time of the meeting.

Season Passes are NOT valid on Wednesday or for the remainder of the season. The passes did not include progression in any competition and all 28 meetings (12 Spires, 11 Cheetahs and 5 Chargers) covered by the Ultimate Pass have all taken place.

Teams:

Monarch Oxford Cheetahs: Sam Masters, Joe Thompson (G), Cameron Heeps R/R, Ashton Boughen, Scott Nicholls (C), Luke Killeen, Connor Coles, Jody Scott (No 8).

Ellie Rose Travel Scunthorpe Scorpions: Michael Palm Toft, Connor Mountain, Simon Lambert (C), Jake Allen, Kyle Howarth, Nathan Ablitt, Luke Harrison.