Leon Flint earned his best finish in the star-studded British Final thanks to a superb series at Belle Vue in Manchester.
The former Berwick Bandits star, now with Glasgow Tigers and Sheffield Tigers, finished third in the event backed by Cab Direct.
Flint admitted to being focused and he told ITV Channel 4: “Previously, I’ve been here to make up the numbers.”
He certainly made an impression on Saturday, winning his first three races and looking certain to make it straight through to the final.
A slip in Heat 13, when he was third, and a last place in the final qualifying race, cost him a direct route to the final four, but he made it by coming second in the semi-final.
After being presented on the podium, Flint thanked his team, family, friends and sponsors and the 23-year-old, Ashington-born, racer added this accolade to his CV which also includes wining the British under-19 and under-21 championship.
Pre-event favourite, Robert Lambert (unattached), who lives in Poland and rides in Sweden, won with Charles Wright (Redcar) in second spot. His performance earned him a wild card in the Grand Prix.
Fourth was 16-year-old, Cooper Rushen, who rides for King’s Lynn and Poole. Indeed, he was at Armadale on Friday night as Edinburgh Monarchs won 47-43 in the Cab Direct Championship to boost their play-off hopes.
Spare a thought for Edinburgh Monarchs rider, Dan Thompson, who was third in his semi-final, behind Flint, and therefore edged out of the final.
Teenage sensation, Rushen scored two and earned two bonus points at Armadale, and this is a racer who is awaiting his national exam results. He certainly got a result here with some superb racing at belle Vue, but his gate pick in the final could have cost him dear. He selected gate three, a gate which had failed to produce on the night.
A mention should also be made of Edinburgh-born, Ace Pijper, the 19-year-old son of former Monarchs captain, Theo, who was in the pits. Pijper came in as a late replacement for former Edinburgh rider, Craig Cook, and the Redcar racer performed well.
The entire event was screened on ITV 4, the first time live speedway has been on terrestrial television since 1985 when the sport was a regular feature on ITV’s World of Sport.
FLINT IN ACTION: A picture from our library of Leon Flint racing.
