24 May 2011
Posted in
Individual
Danny returned to action in spectacular style at Sheffield Speedway last Thursday as he qualified for the British Final at Wolverhampton on Monday 6th June and did so in some style too in a meeting won by Scott Nicholls, with Ben Barker second and Richard Hall third.
Anyone thinking that this would be a tentative comeback for King after just over three weeks out with his neck injury were very much mistaken as he cruised to qualification with 11 points and a fourth place finish and only lost out on a rostrum place after a count back situation – Richard Hall also finished on 11 points but he had finished ahead of Danny in heat 17 to take the spoils.
It was certainly a far better night at Owlerton for Danny than in 2010 when he struggled in the wet conditions and then faced a race-off just to get into the British Final proper. This time a good heat four performance when he challenged Scott Nicholls hard before taking second place and good wins in heats seven and ten put him well on course for qualification by the interval stage.
In heat 16 Danny followed home Sheffield favourite Josh Auty for a vital second place before engine problems in his final outing in heat 17 restricted him to a third place finish, after he had made the start on Richard Hall, to end on a final total of 11 points. Whilst that last ride may have been a little disappointing, Danny was thrilled to have secured his place in the Final in June;
“It was a brilliant return for me. I felt good on the bike and didn’t hurt during the meeting itself. Afterwards I was in a bit of discomfort though, but some more physiotherapy sessions will help that side of things. I am really happy to have qualified and I’m looking forward to the British Final where I want to go one better than last year and make the rostrum on the night”.
The Huntingdon racer now turns his attention to this Thursday night (26th May) when he makes another return to his favourite East of England Showground track as the Birmingham Brummies take on Peterborough Panthers in a Sky Sports Elite league fixture (tapes-up 7.30pm).
British Semi-Final scorers at Owlerton
1. Ritchie Hawkins 6
2. Craig Cook 1
3. Chris Harris 10
4. Andrew Tully 4
5. Jordan Frampton 9
6. James Wright 5
7. Luke Bowen 5
8. Ben Barker 13
9. Josh Auty 7
10. Richard Hall 11
11. Derek Sneddon 4
12. Paul Cooper 3
13. Ricky Ashworth 9
14. Scott Nicholls 14
15. Danny King 2, 3, 3, 2, 1 = 11
16. Kyle Newman 5
17. Ashley Birks (reserve) 3