A positively balmy Smallmead Stadium served up more hot stuff for a healthy-sized attendance, as the Racers got back to winning ways after four successive defeats on the road.

And they did it in emphatic style, too, putting the Tigers to the sword by a 27-point margin.

Ulrich Ostergaard once more went through the card for a 15-point maximum, while Mark Lemon (10+1), Tom P. Madsen (9+1) and guest reserve Joe Haines (9+1) were all paid for double figure returns.

Heat one required a re-run after movement from Chris Mills had merited a warning from meeting referee Mick Posselwhite. At the second attempt, Ricky Ashworth held out Lemon for a fine win, whilst Joel Parsons got the better of an early duel with Mills for the remaining point.

The reserves’ race went the way of Haines in dynamic fashion, while the all-action Paul Cooper came through to pass Nicki Glanz in mid-race. This after Glanz had initially done well to pass the Yorkshireman in the early stages of the race.

Ostergaard flew to victory in heat three, with visiting skipper Andre Compton filling second spot after he and Tomas Suchanek had clashed on the fourth bend of the opening lap. However, with the Czech holding third position thereafter, Reading moved into the lead, at 10-8.

Haines was an impressive winner of heat four after surging under Ben Wilson on the back straight of the opening lap. Wilson looked to have held out the pressing Madsen for second place, but lifted alarmingly exiting the final bend and careered into the safety fence. That allowed Madsen through, giving the Racers a slightly fortuitous ‘fiver’.

The next race featured a Reading one-two from Ostergaard and Suchanek, as the home duo finished some distance ahead of Ashworth and Parsons. Their efforts pushed the Racers along into a comfortable 20-10 lead.

Another big 5-1 followed through Lemon and Mills, before Compton was nominated for a tactical ride in heat seven. The move at least stemmed the tide from Sheffield’s point of view, as their captain easily took victory from Madsen and Glanz.

Maximum points followed from Mills and Haines, as the homesters further stretched their advantage to 33-18. A re-run heat nine ended in a third victory of the night for Ostergaard, while the battling Cooper just caught a slowing Suchanek on the run to the chequered flag.

A phenomenal heat ten eventually went to Lemon, after a tremendous battle with Compton. Initially, the visiting No. 3 bravely squeezed past the Aussie right by the fence on the back straight, before ‘Lemo’ gradually harried his opponent down and drove outside on the same piece of track during lap three.

Madsen won an evenly split race eleven, prior to Ostergaard and Compton serving-up a classic in heat twelve. Compton surged into an early lead and held on for over two laps, before the Racers’ Main Dane blasted outside for a brilliant success.

Ashworth took a shared heat thirteen, before a big whoosh from the ‘Such’ took Reading’s Czech ace to the fore in the penultimate race. Meanwhile, with Glanz slotting in behind, the dominant home side registered their fifth 5-1 of a one-sided night.

Closing proceedings, Ostergaard wrapped-up his full-house by beating Ashworth, whilst Lemon’s third place gave the Racers 60 points for the first time in the 08 term.

READING
Mark Lemon (C) 2 3 3 1* 1 - - 10 (1)
Chris Mills F 2* 3 1 - - - 6 (1)
Ulrich Ostergaard 3 3 3 3 3 - - 15
Tomas Suchanek 1 2* 1 3 - - - 7 (1)
Tom P. Madsen 2* 2 3 2 - - - 9 (1)
Nicki Glanz 1 1* R 2* - - - 4 (2)
Joe Haines 3 3 2* 1 - - - 9 (1)

SHEFFIELD
Ricky Ashworth 3 1 1* 3 2 - - 10 (1)
Joel Parsons 1 0 1 2 - - - 4
Andre Compton (C) 2 6 2 2 0 - - 12
Lee Smethills 0 0 0 - - - - 0
Ben Wilson F 1 0 0 - - - 1
Sam Martin 0 0 0 1 - - - 1
Paul Cooper 2 1 0 2 R - - 5