IMG, the world’s leading sports, entertainment and media company, today announced it has acquired BSI Speedway, transferring the promoting rights of the FIM World Individual Speedway Grand Prix Series (SGP)  and FIM Speedway World Cup (SWC) from BSI Speedway to IMG.

The existing BSI Speedway management team - including current Chief Executive, John Postlethwaite, and Managing Director, Paul Bellamy - will take up their new roles at IMG with immediate effect.

George Pyne, President IMG Sports & Entertainment, said: “We are very excited by this acquisition  which adds to our existing motorsports involvement in events such as the Lexmark Indy 300, Clipsal 500 and Sandown 500 races in Australia.  The FIM Speedway Grand Prix Series and FIM Speedway World Cup have come a long way in the last seven years under BSI’s management.  We feel confident we can add the significant resources that are required to take the two world championships to the next level using IMG's capabilities across all areas of commercial rights and our international network of offices.”

Vito Ippolito, President of the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM), said: “As the new president of the FIM I am delighted that we have been able to attract the world’s leading sports and entertainment company to one of our leading racing properties.  This is the single biggest piece of news to have happened in the sport of speedway in the last thirty years and we now look forward to see the Speedway Grands Prix expand overseas.”

John Postlethwaite, Chief Executive, BSI, commented: “I’m delighted all the hard work we have put into growing world championship speedway as a team has been noticed by a company of IMG’s stature.  Myself and the team are extremely excited about realising some of our future growth plans that would not have been possible if we had continued independently.”