BELLE Vue make the trip to South Yorkshire to face rivals Sheffield in another Premiership Knockout Cup encounter on Thursday (7.30pm).
As with Monday’s meeting at the National Speedway Stadium, it will be the first fixture of 2026 at Owlerton, where the Tigers have enjoyed a strong home record in recent years.
Whilst Cup progression will not be determined by Thursday’s result, as both teams also have to face Leicester in the Northern group, an aggregate point is still available which could be significant in the overall standings.
The ATPI Aces take a six-point advantage into the meeting after their hard-fought 48-42 victory in Manchester, and will be hoping for better fortune than on their most recent visits to the Steel City venue.
With Norick Blodorn absent following his crash in Heat 1 on Monday, manager Mark Lemon has brought in new Northampton signing Kye Thomson to guest in the No.2 position.
Dan Bewley was the Aces’ top performer on their trips to Sheffield last season, scoring 12 and 13+1 respectively.
And the World No.3 says they can take plenty of encouragement from their opening-night victory, which was achieved despite a number of problems along the way.
Bewley said: “I thought Monday was a good showing throughout the team. Obviously Will (Cairns) had a tough night with mechanical issues, but I’m sure he’ll get better from it, and Norick went out pretty early.
“Brady was under the weather but he soldiered on, and I think it was a good effort from the team.
“It’s nice to be back and to have won our first meeting in the Knockout Cup, and hopefully we will get through.”
Both sides name the same riding orders as on Monday, with Luke Killeen making his home debut for Sheffield in the Rising Star berth.
ATPI Aces return to action in Manchester on Easter Monday (April 6) with a midday showdown against Leicester. Tickets and hospitality packages are available from https://www.bellevue-speedway.com/tickets , with Bank Holiday breakfast options available for just £13.95.
SHEFFIELD: Jack Holder, Anders Rowe, Chris Holder, Leon Flint, Josh Pickering, Jye Etheridge, Luke Killeen.
BELLE VUE: Brady Kurtz, Kye Thomson, Peter Kildemand, Zach Cook, Dan Bewley, Tate Zischke, William Cairns.