BELLE VUE marched on at the top of the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership with a hugely impressive 55-35 win at bottom club Northampton on Thursday.
The ATPI Aces were utterly dominant at the International Shaleway, recording seven 4-2s and one 5-1 in the first eight races to open up a massive 18-point lead.
Chris Harris proved a fine stand-in for Zach Cook and it was a full team display from the six Aces riders on duty, with pride of place going to the returning Tate Zischke with a paid-12 haul including three race wins, and another excellent performance on the road from Norick Blodorn who scored 13 from six rides.
With Brady Kurtz controlling the first third of the meeting with a hat-trick of race wins and Will Cairns chipping in with points in every race, the only real setback came when Peter Kildemand fell on turn three in Heat 10 with Harris taking swift action to lay his machine down.
Kildemand was able to walk away after brief treatment and he returned to the track to take second place behind Zischke in a match-clinching 5-1 in Heat 12.
But much of the Aces’ work was done in the early stages with 4-2 in the opening two heats, Zischke passing Sam Hagon to win Heat 2, and that was followed up by a big 5-1 from Kildemand and Harris in Heat 3.
Every race saw the visitors extend their lead as Kurtz got the better of Jaimon Lidsey in Heat 4 and then Adam Ellis in the next race, whilst Zischke rode a superb first bend to win Heat 6.
On each occasion Aces riders also supplied third place, and that was also the case in Heat 7 when Kildemand had to push home for third place after suffering damage in an earlier clash with Lidsey.
When Blodorn and Cairns recorded yet another 4-2 in Heat 8 the scoreline was up to 33-15, which was virtually job done, before Northampton fashioned a mini comeback as Lidsey became their first winner in Heat 9, whilst Harris had to split Niels-Kristian Iversen and Kye Thomson in Heat 10.
Kurtz ran a rare last place in Heat 11, just being unable to get up with Mitch McDiarmid on the line, but Blodorn prevented any damage with a fine race win.
After the match was secured with a 5-1 in the next race, the final three heats were shared overall as Ellis led a Northampton 4-2 in Heat 14 but that was cancelled out in Heat 15 as boss Mark Lemon put his faith in Blodorn and Zischke who didn’t disappoint with a 4-2 of their own.
Lemon said: “I didn’t really expect that scoreline to be quite honest, but I guess the boys are riding with a lot of confidence.
“Bomber was a good choice of guest, the R/R (for Jason Doyle) worked out for us, and I was really happy with young Tate Zischke, he had a blinder of a night.
“The confidence is really high in the whole camp, and obviously when you’re flying high at the top of the table I guess that’s evident. It’s a nice result tonight.”
The Aces remain ten points clear at the top of the table after second placed Leicester also scored three points on Thursday.
The Lions are Belle Vue’s next opponents at the Hydroscand Arena on August 27, but before that comes the Cab Direct British Final in Manchester on Saturday (7pm).
NORTHAMPTON 35: Jaimon Lidsey 12, Adam Ellis 6, Mitch McDiarmid 5+1, Kye Thomson 5, Niels-Kristian Iversen 5, Sam Hagon 2, Justin Sedgmen 0.
BELLE VUE 55: Norick Blodorn 13, Tate Zischke 11+1, Brady Kurtz 11, Chris Harris 9+1, Peter Kildemand 6+2, Will Cairns 5, Jason Doyle r/r.
Belle Vue win the aggregate point