Australian Under-21 Individual Speedway Championship
The Australian Under-21 Speedway Championship is a motorcycle speedway championship held each year since 1986, with the exception of 1994 and 1995, to determine the Australian Under-21 national champion. The event is organised by Motorcycling Australia (MA). The event was run as the Australian Under-18 Championship in 1986. This lasted just one year and was changed to the Under-21 Championship in 1987 to bring it in line with the Individual Speedway Junior World Championship which is also for Under-21s.
The inaugural Under-21 Championship in 1987 was held at the in Victoria. Queensland riders scored a trifecta. The championship was won by Gary Allan from brothers and . It would take another 22 years (2009) before another Queenslander would step on the podium when Darcy Ward won the first of three straight titles. Victorian won the single Under-18 Championship in 1986.
Leigh Adams from Mildura, Sydney's Chris Holder and Victorian rider Max Fricke, jointly hold the record for most wins in the Australian Under-21 Championship with four wins each. Adams would win the 1992 Under-21 World Championship as well as winning a record 10 senior Australian Championships while in 1992 he became the first reigning Australian U/21 Champion to win the senior title. Holder won the 2012 World Championship. Triple Australian Under-21 Champion Darcy Ward won the Under-21 World Championship in 2009 and 2010 while finishing second in 2011 while Max Fricke won the Under-21 World Championship in 2016 after finishing 6th in the 2015 U/21 World Championship.
Leigh Adams, Darcy Ward and Max Fricke are the only Australian Under-21 Champions to have won the Under-21 World Championship.
No rider from Western Australia, Tasmania, the Northern Territory or the Australian Capital Territory has won the championship, though 2003 and 2004 winner Rory Schlein from South Australia was born in Darwin (NT).
Max Fricke from Victoria won the (2017) Australian Under-21 Championship. Frick won his record equaling 4th title at the Loxford Park Speedway in Kurri Kurri on 28 January.[1]
Jaimon Lidsey from Victoria is the current Australian Under-21 Champion having retained the title he won in 2018 again in 2019.
Placegetters since 1986[]
| Year | Venue | City/State | Winner | Runner-up | 3rd place |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986* | Mildura, Vic | (Vic) | |||
| 1987 | Undera, Vic | Gary Allan (Qld) | (Qld) | (Qld) | |
| 1988 | North Arm Speedway | Adelaide, SA | Leigh Adams (Vic) | (SA) | Craig Boyce (NSW) |
| 1989 | Mildura, Vic | (SA) | (SA) | Leigh Adams (Vic) | |
| 1990 | Renmark, SA | Leigh Adams (Vic) | Shane Bowes (SA) | Shane Parker (SA) | |
| Year | Venue | City/State | Winner | Runner-up | 3rd place |
| 1991 | Mildura, Vic | Leigh Adams (Vic) | Shane Parker (SA) | Jason Lyons (Vic) | |
| 1992 | Riverview Speedway | Murray Bridge, SA | Leigh Adams (Vic) | (Vic) | Jason Crump (Vic) |
| 1993 | Mildura, Vic | Ryan Sullivan (SA) | (Vic) | (Vic) | |
| 1994 | not held | ||||
| 1995 | not held | ||||
| 1996 | North Arm Speedway | Adelaide, SA | Ryan Sullivan (SA) | (SA) | (SA) |
| 1997 | Undera, Vic | Adam Shields (NSW) | (SA) | Craig Watson (NSW) | |
| 1998 | Mildura, Vic | Travis McGowan (Vic) | (NSW) | Adam Shields (NSW) | |
| 1999 | Gold Coast, Qld | (SA) | Kevin Doolan (Vic) | Rusty Harrison (SA) | |
| 2000 | Tamworth, NSW | Travis McGowan (Vic) | Kevin Doolan (Vic) | Scott Smith (Qld) | |
| Year | Venue | City/State | Winner | Runner-up | 3rd place |
| 2001 | Gillman Speedway | Adelaide, SA | Rusty Harrison (SA) | (Vic) | (NSW) |
| 2002 | Gillman Speedway | Adelaide, SA | Travis McGowan (Vic) | Cameron Woodward (Vic) | Rusty Harrison (SA) |
| 2003 | Tamworth, NSW | Rory Schlein (SA) | Cameron Woodward (Vic) | (NSW) | |
| 2004 | Undera, Vic | Rory Schlein (SA) | Robert Ksiezak (SA) | (SA) | |
| Tamworth, NSW | Chris Holder (NSW) | Rory Schlein (SA) | Cameron Woodward (Vic) | ||
| Gillman Speedway | Adelaide, SA | Chris Holder (NSW) | Troy Batchelor (Qld) | Jason Doyle (NSW) | |
| Gillman Speedway | Adelaide, SA | Chris Holder (NSW) | Troy Batchelor (Qld) | Robert Ksiezak (SA) | |
| ** | Mildura, Vic | Chris Holder (NSW) | Tyron Proctor (Vic) | ||
| Gosford, NSW | Darcy Ward (Qld) | Kozza Smith (NSW) | Aaron Summers (SA) | ||
| Mildura, Vic | Darcy Ward (Qld) | Justin Sedgmen (Vic) | Josh Auty ( )
| ||
| Year | Venue | City/State | Winner | Runner-up | 3rd place |
| Brisbane, Qld | Darcy Ward (Qld) | Richard Sweetman (NSW) | Josh Grajczonek (Qld) | ||
| 2012 | Loxford Park Speedway | Kurri Kurri, NSW | (NSW) | Justin Sedgmen (Vic) | (NSW) |
| 2013[2] | Loxford Park Speedway | Kurri Kurri, NSW | Max Fricke (Vic) | (NSW) | Justin Sedgmen (Vic) |
| 2014[3] | Gillman Speedway | Adelaide, SA | Max Fricke (Vic) | Ryan Douglas (Qld) | Jack Holder (NSW) |
| 2015 | Loxford Park Speedway | Kurri Kurri, NSW | Max Fricke (Vic) | Jack Holder (NSW) | Brady Kurtz (NSW) |
| 2016 | Gillman Speedway | Adelaide, SA | Jack Holder (NSW) | Brady Kurtz (NSW) | Max Fricke (Vic) |
| 2017 | Loxford Park Speedway | Kurri Kurri, NSW | Max Fricke (Vic) | Jack Holder (NSW) | Jaimon Lidsey (Vic) |
| 2018 | Mildura, Vic | Jaimon Lidsey (Vic) | |||
| 2019 | Ipswich, Qld | Jaimon Lidsey (Vic) | Jordan Stewart (Vic) | Matthew Gilmore | |
| 2020[4] | Undera, Vic | Jaimon Lidsey (Vic) | |||
| 2021[5] | not held | ||||
* 1986 run as the Australian Under-18 Championship.
** 2008 No third place awarded. Troy Batchelor fell & was excluded on lap 2, Robert Ksiezak suffered engine failure in lap 2 of the re-run Final leaving Chris Holder and Tyron Proctor as the only finishers
Medals classification[]
| Pos | Rider | Total |  |
 |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Leigh Adams | 5 | 4 | 1 | |
| Max Fricke | 5 | 4 | 1 | ||
| 3. | Chris Holder | 4 | 4 | ||
| 4. | Travis McGowan | 3 | 3 | ||
| Darcy Ward | 3 | 3 | |||
| 6. | Rory Schlein | 3 | 2 | 1 | |
| 7. | Ryan Sullivan | 2 | 2 | ||
| 8. | Jack Holder | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 9. | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 10. | Rusty Harrison | 3 | 1 | 2 | |
| 11. | 2 | 1 | 1 | ||
| 12. | Adam Shields | 2 | 1 | 1 | |
| Jaimon Lidsey | 3 | 2 | 1 | ||
| 14. | 1 | 1 | |||
| Gary Alan | 1 | 1 | |||
| 1 | 1 |
See also[]
References[]
- ^ Title No.4 for Fricke
- ^ "Fricke Flies to Aussie Crown", speedwaygp.com, 19 January 2013. Retrieved 20 January 2013
- ^ "Max Fricke wins thrilling Aussie U/21 Title"
- ^ https://www.australianspeedwaychampionships.com.au/media/jaimon-lidsey-takes-his-third-under-21-speedway-championship-title/
- ^ https://www.australianspeedwaychampionships.com.au/media/covid-19-forces-cancellation-of-2021-postponement-of-2022-australian-speedway-championships/
- Books
- Loader, Tony (1991). Loader's International Speedway Annual 1991. Tony Loader. p. 66. ISSN 1036-4404.
- Articles
- Oakes, Peter (2013) "New Champ Keeps Cool", Speedway Star, 26 January 2013, pp. 6–7
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