The 2005 Elite League speedway season was the 71st season of the top division of
speedway
Speedway may refer to:
Racing Race tracks
*Daytona International Speedway, a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida.
*Edmonton International Speedway, also known as Speedway Park, a former motor raceway in Edmonton, Alberta.
*Indianapolis Motor Spe ...
in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
and governed by the
Speedway Control Bureau
The Speedway Control Bureau (SCB), known as the Speedway Control Board between 1948 and 2002, governs the sport of motorcycle speedway in the United Kingdom on behalf of the Auto Cycle Union (ACU). The directors are appointed by the ACU and Br ...
(SCB), in conjunction with the
British Speedway Promoters' Association
The British Speedway Promoters Limited (BSPL) organises the domestic motorcycle speedway competitions in the United Kingdom. They are also responsible for the promotion and running of the FIM meetings staged in Britain. Wimbledon controller Ronn ...
(
BSPA
The British Speedway Promoters Limited (BSPL) organises the domestic motorcycle speedway competitions in the United Kingdom. They are also responsible for the promotion and running of the FIM meetings staged in Britain. Wimbledon controller Ronn ...
).
Season summary
In 2005, the league consisted of ten teams, with the title being decided by a play-off between the top four.
Belle Vue Aces topped the regular season table and won the
Knockout Cup. Their world champion rider
Jason Crump
Jason Philip Crump (born 6 August 1975) is a former international motorcycle speedway rider from Australia (UK born). He is a three-time Speedway World Champion, and a World Cup winner.
In a 21-year career in Speedway, Crump finished with sev ...
was in superb form throughout the season. Fellow Australian
Leigh Adams
Leigh Scott Adams (born 28 April 1971 in Mildura, Victoria)Oakes, P.(2004). ''British Speedway Who's Who''. is an Australian former motorcycle speedway rider. He is a multiple Speedway Grand Prix winner and World Team Champion. He also wo ...
topped the league averages for Swindon for arguably the second consecutive season but it was
Coventry Bees
Coventry Bees are a motorcycle speedway team that existed from 1929 to 2018. They raced at Brandon Stadium, Brandon, Warwickshire, Brandon near Coventry, England. They are eight times champions of Britain.
History Origins and 1920s
The firs ...
that experienced their first title success since the glory days of the late 1980s.
[
Coventry had finished bottom of the table during the previous season and with the exception of finishing runner-up in 2003 had been starved of success. The club made a change that proved instrumental, they brought in ]Scott Nicholls
Scott Karl Nicholls (born 16 May 1978) is an English motorcycle speedway rider, who has won the British Championship seven times,[Andreas Jonsson
Andreas Karl Rune Jonsson (born 3 September 1980 in Stockholm, Sweden) is a Swedish former international motorcycle speedway rider. He was a member of the Sweden speedway team that won the World Cup in 2003, 2004 and 2015.
He earned 26 caps for ...]
and Chris Harris Chris Harris may refer to:
Sportspeople
* Chris Harris (basketball) (1933–2022), English basketballer
* Chris Harris (cricketer) (born 1969), New Zealand cricketer
* Chris Harris (darts player) (born 1977), Welsh darts player
* Chris Harris (rowe ...
the team defeated Belle Vue in the Elite League Play off final.
Final table
'A' Fixtures
'B' Fixtures
Play-offs
Semi-final decided over one leg. Grand Final decided by aggregate scores over two legs.
Semi-finals
*Belle Vue Aces 53-40 Eastbourne Eagles
*Coventry Bees 55-41 Peterborough Panthers
Final
First leg
Second leg
The Coventry Bees were declared League Champions, winning on aggregate 101-83.
Elite League Knockout Cup
The 2005 Elite League Knockout Cup was the 67th edition of the Knockout Cup for tier one teams. Belle Vue Aces
The Belle Vue Aces are a British speedway club, based in Manchester. The club hold the record of having won the top tier League championship 14 times. They currently compete in the SGB Premiership, racing at The National Speedway Stadium, wit ...
were the winners of the competition.
First round
Quarter-finals
Semi-finals
Final
First leg
Second leg
The Belle Vue Aces were declared Knockout Cup Champions, winning on aggregate 97-83.
Riders' Championship
Nicki Pedersen
Nicki Pedersen (born 2 April 1977) is a Danish motorcycle speedway rider. He is a three time world champion having won the World Championship in 2003, 2007 and 2008. He has also won the World Cup with Denmark in 2006, 2008, 2012 and 2014.
Car ...
won the Riders' Championship. The final was held at Abbey Stadium
The Abbey Stadium, currently known as the Cledara Abbey Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is a football stadium in Cambridge, England. It has been the home ground of Cambridge United since 1932, and currently has a maximum capacity of 7,937 spe ...
on 28 August.
Pairs
The Elite League Pairs Championship
The SGB Premiership Pairs (formerly the Elite League Pairs) is a motorcycle speedway contest between the top two riders from each club competing in the SGB Premiership in the United Kingdom.
History
The Championship was a reincarnation of the B ...
was held at the East of England Arena
The East of England Showground is a large showground area (667,731sqm) located on East of England Way near Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England. The Showground is owned by Bellway as of around 2019 and the site currently includes the East of E ...
on 27 March and was won by Swindon Robins for the second consecutive year.
Leading final averages
Riders & final averages
Arena Essex
* 10.06
* 8.14
* 6.43
* 6.21
* 6.05
* 5.94
* 5.66
* 5.09
* 4.96
* 4.48
* 4.20
Belle Vue
* 10.35
* 7.87
* 7.69
* 7.35
* 6.95
* 6.36
* 5.09
* 4.43
* 1.50
* 1.43
Coventry
* 9.45
* 8.76
* 7.20
* 7.20
* 6.79
* 6.43
* 6.22
* 6.00
* 4.20
Eastbourne
* 10.30
* 7.75
* 7.22
* 7.11
* 6.45
* 4.76
* 4.65
* 2.56
Ipswich
* 9.44
* 8.43
* 7.91
* 6.99
* 5.91
* 5.27
* 3.82
* 3.28
* 3.16
Oxford
* 9.32
* 7.95
* 7.45
* 6.36
* 6.24
* 6.22
* 5.09
* 4.15
* 4.00
* 3.06
* 2.67
* 1.28
Peterborough
* 9.48
* 8.19
* 7.38
* 7.21
* 7.10
* 6.62
* 6.05
* 2.95
* 2.05
Poole
* 9.27
* 8.13
* 7.78
* 7.38
* 6.26
* 5.28
* 4.35
* 3.69
* 2.13
Swindon
* 10.42
* 8.85
* 8.48
* 4.59
* 4.38
* 4.10
* 3.93
* 3.89
* 3.76
* 1.67
Wolverhampton
* 8.82
* 7.44
* 6.98
* 6.65
* 6.36
* 5.61
* 5.23
See also
* Speedway in the United Kingdom
The sport of speedway in the United Kingdom has changed little since the first meetings in the 1920s. It has three domestic leagues, its own Speedway Grand Prix, and an annual entry into the Speedway World Cup / Speedway of Nations.
History
S ...
* List of United Kingdom Speedway League Champions
The List of United Kingdom Speedway League Champions is split into three divisions, the top tier, the second tier and third tier, all three divisions have been known in various guises such as National League, Premier League, Elite League and many ...
* Knockout Cup (speedway)
Knockout Cup (sometimes referred to as the KO Cup) is a type of British motorcycle speedway competition, examples of which have run annually since 1929.
Each tier of British Speedway has its own respective Knockout Cup. The current Knockout Cu ...
References
{{United Kingdom Speedway Seasons
SGB Premiership
2005 in British motorsport