Sidecar Grand Slam Series Returns For The 2013/14 season - July 2013
July 3, 2013 by Gillman Media
The Sidecar Grand Slam Series will return for the 2013/14 season, with two rounds, including the final, scheduled for the Gillman Speedway Stadium.
The 2013/14 series will be staged over seven rounds and will include two tracks new to the Grand Slam.
The series will start at Kurri Kurri in New South Wales on 16 November, and then will take a break until after Christmas when the second round will be held at the Murray Bridge Speedway in South Australia on 4 January.
The third round is back in New South Wales when the new Albury track joins the series for the first time a fortnight later on 18 January.
The fourth round is in the South Australian Riverland at the Renmark Speedway on 1 February, and then the series comes to Gillman for the fifth round on 22 February.
The sixth round will be at the other new track to the series, Arunga Park Speedway in Alice Springs on 1 March and then the Grand Final will be at Gillman on 22 March.
International Riders
As well as two new tracks joining the series, the 2013/14 Grand Slam has been boosted by the inclusion of two top British Teams — Mark Cossar and his passenger Darryl Whetstone, and Mick Cave and passenger Ben Goddard.
Cossar has enjoyed a celebrated career having won the British Speedway Championship and the Grasstrack Masters Title on multiple occasions, while Cave has been one of the UK’s leading sidecar exponents for 25 years.
The New Zealand husband and wife duo of Andrew Buchanan and Philippa Burns will also return making three International teams in the series. Buchanan and Burns endured a torrid time last season due to various injuries, but Philippa says the Palmerston North based team will make amends this season. “We are both injury free now and we are working hard on our machinery to ensure that we are right back on the pace,” Philippa explained. “We are undertaking a big campaign next season in Australia and New Zealand and we are very excited to be a part of the Sidecar Grand Slam”.
“The international contingent represents a major coup for the event,” said series spokesperson Dave Parker. “The Sidecar Grand Slam Series is gaining an international reputation and the inclusion of the New Zealand and British teams is absolutely massive for the event and will ensure that next season is truly memorable for race fans across the nation”.
The list of Australian riders for the series is still being finalised, but the first team to confirm they will contest all rounds is the exciting Murray Bridge duo of Mick Headland and Paul Waters, and they will enter next season’s tournament as one of the series favourites given their imposing record at the sport’s highest level.
“We are looking forward to being a part of the Sidecar Grand Slam and we are preparing right now in an effort to be as competitive as possible,” Headland said.
“We lacked a little consistency last season, due mainly to mechanical gremlins and we are confident that we can overcome these issues. We are building a brand new bike, which means we will have a stable of three sidecars to choose from next term. In addition I have also purchased a new Yamaha R1 Cross Plane engine and I’m hoping it will deliver the speed I’m after; not to mention superior reliability.
“The Sidecar Grand Slam is a terrific series and is easily the biggest event in our sport and I want to win it. My passenger Paul Waters is just as focused as me and I’m really hoping we will be one of the teams to beat next summer”.
Headland and Waters have been one of the most successful competitors in the three year history of the Sidecar Grand Slam having won more rounds than any other team.
Plaisted and Gilbert to defend series crown
The second Australian team to confirm they’ll compete in all rounds of the 2013/14 tournament was defending Grand Slam champions Mark Plaisted and Sam Gilbert.
The 29-year-old South Australian and 17-year old Gilbert, from Sydney, had a stellar 2012/13 season, winning the Sidecar Grand Slam in a championship run off against seven times Australian Champion, Darrin Treloar and passenger Simon Cohrs.
Plaisted and his Blackchrome sponsored team are excited to continue their commitment to Australia’s fastest growing speedway series. “We’re pumped to be taking part and defending our crown,” Plaisted said.
“Sam and I had a good season last term by winning the South Australian crown and the Grand Slam. We hope to do this again and maybe add the Australian title to our CV too.”
Plaisted picked up major sponsorship from Blackchrome Sportswear at the beginning of last season, marking the clothing company’s first serious foray into the sport. The partnership is set to continue this season and Plaisted is thrilled they are supporting him once again. “Having Blackchrome come on board was a big deal for me,” he said. “For them to have faith in Sam and myself is a massive confidence booster. Their support certainly helped us last season and we can’t wait to continue this successful partnership in the Sidecar Grand Slam.”
In other news, Brisbane based Stuart Firth has confirmed he will be taking part in multiple rounds of the series, and former Queensland Champion Brodie Cohen has also indicated to organisers that he will be contesting most, if not all rounds next summer.
2013/14 Speedway Sidecar Grand Slam Fixtures
Round 1 – Kurri Speedway, NSW – November 16, 2013
Round 2 – Murray Bridge Speedway, SA – January 4, 2014
Round 3 – Albury Speedway, NSW – January 18, 2014
Round 4 – Riverland Speedway, Renmark, SA – February 1, 2014
Round 5 – Gillman Speedway Stadium, SA – February 22, 2014
Round 6 – Arunga Park Speedway, Alice Springs, NT – March 1, 2014
Round 7 – Gillman Speedway Stadium, SA – March 22, 2014 – Series Grand Final
Defending Grand Slam champions Mark Plaisted and Sam Gilbert, and their Blackchrome sponsored team. Plaisted and Gilbert won the 2013 series in dramatic fashion at Kurri Kurri in April, beating seven times Australian Champion, Darrin Treloar and passenger Simon Cohrs in a run-off needed to decide the series after they were tied on points after the six rounds.