Scott Nicholls
 | |
| Born | 16 May 1978 Ipswich, England |
|---|---|
| Nationality |  England |
| Website | Nicholls Racing |
| Current club information | |
| British league | Belle Vue Aces |
| Polish league | Start Gniezno |
| Swedish league | Dackarna |
| Career history | |
| Great Britain | |
| 1995–1998, 2001–2003, 2009–2010 | Ipswich Witches |
| 1999–2000 | Poole Pirates |
| 2004–2007, 2009, 2012–2013 | Coventry Bees |
| 2008 | Eastbourne Eagles |
| 2011 | Swindon Robins |
| 2014– | Belle Vue Aces |
| Sweden | |
| 1998–2006 | Smederna |
| 2007–2008 | Hammarby |
| 2009– | Vargarna |
| Speedway Grand Prix statistics | |
| SGP Number | 9 |
| Starts | 67[1] |
| Podiums | 5 (0–4–1) |
| Finalist | 9 times |
| Individual honours | |
| 1998, 1999 | British Under-21 Champion |
| 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2011, 2012 | British Champion |
| 2005 | Golden Helmet of Pardubice (CZE) |
| Team honours | |
| 1998, 2005, 2007 | Elite League Champion |
| 1998, 2006, 2007, 2008 | Elite League KO Cup Winner |
| 1998, 2007 | Craven Shield Winner |
Scott Karl Nicholls (born 16 May 1978)[2] is a British speedway rider, who has won the British Championship seven times.
Career
Born in Ipswich, Nicholls began his speedway career in grasstrack racing becoming National Schoolboy champion in 1993. His first international appearance came in 1996 when he was selected to ride for Great Britain in the Speedway World Cup final. He then became British Under-21 Champion in 1998 and again in 1999.
His first experience of the Speedway Grand Prix series came with a wild card ride in Britain, with similar rides following in 2000 and 2001. He qualified as a full-time Grand Prix rider in 2002 and capped that season with a second place in the season ending event in Australia. That year he also won the first of his six British Championships. His sixth British Championship win occurred in 2011.[3]
Nicholls was the most successful ever Coventry Bees captain, skippering them to five trophies in three seasons between 2004 and 2007, including two Elite League championships.[citation needed] Despite quitting the British Elite League to reduce his racing schedule in 2009, Nicholls returned to the Coventry Bees in May 2009 as temporary cover for the injured Olly Allen.
Nicholls led his home club, the Ipswich Witches for the 2010 Elite League season, as well as riding for Vargarna in the Swedish league and Miskolc, a Hungarian team in the Polish league. With Ipswich dropping down a division, Nicholls signed for Swindon Robins for 2011. After an unsuccessful spell with the Robins, Nicholls returned to parent club Coventry Bees for the 2012 season, staying there in 2013. He has signed to ride for Belle Vue Aces in 2014.
Speedway Grand Prix results
| Year | Position | Points | Best finish | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 27th | 3 | 19th | A single wild card ride in Coventry |
| 2001 | 33rd | 4 | 17th | Wild card ride in Cardiff |
| 2002 | 13th | 72 | 2nd | First podium in Australia (2nd place) |
| 2003 | 7th | 102 | 2nd | Second in Sweden |
| 2004 | 12th | 66 | 6th | Missed Czech GP through injury |
| 2005 | 9th | 72 | 5th | |
| 2006 | 11th | 83 | 2nd | Missed Czech GP through injury, 2nd in Italy |
| 2007 | 8th | 91 | 2nd | Finished 2nd in Slovenia, qualified for 2008 GPs after a race-off |
| 2008 | 9th | 77 | 4th |
| Race no. | Grand Prix | Pos. | Pts. | Heats | Draw No |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 /11 |  Italian SGP
|
13 | 4 | (1,1,2,X,0) | 15 |
| 2 /11 |  European SGP
|
13 | 6 | (1,1,2,1,1) | 14 |
| 3 /11 |  Swedish SGP
|
14 | 3 | (2,0,0,0,2) | 7 |
| 4 /11 |  Danish SGP
|
11 | 7 | (2,1,2,1,1) | 13 |
| 5 /11 |  British SGP
|
7 | 9 | (1,1,2,2,3) | 4 |
| 6 /11 |  Czech Rep. SGP
|
4 | 12 | (0,3,2,3,2) +2 +0 | 9 |
| 7 /11 | Scandinavian SGP
|
7 | 8 | (1,1,1,3,1) +1 | 6 |
| 8 /11 |  Latvian SGP
|
4 | 13 | (1,3,2,3,2) +2 +0 | 9 |
| 9 /11 |  Polish SGP
|
14 | 4 | (0,0,2,0,2) | 14 |
| 10 /11 |  Slovenian SGP
|
2 | 16 | (2,1,2,3,2) +2 +2 | 2 |
| 11 /11 |  German SGP
|
10 | 8 | (2,1,2,2,1) | 16 |
| Race no. | Grand Prix | Pos. | Pts. | Heats | Draw No |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 /11 | Slovenian SGP
|
11 | 7 | (1,1,1,2,2) | 3 |
| 2 /11 | European SGP
|
16 | 2 | (1,1,0,0,ef) | 15 |
| 3 /11 | Swedish SGP
|
9 | 7 | (1,2,2,F/ex,2) | 4 |
| 4 /11 | Danish SGP
|
11 | 7 | (0,1,2,2,2) | 5 |
| 5 /11 | British SGP
|
4 | 12 | (1,3,2,2,2) +2 +0(T) | 3 |
| 6 /11 | Czech Rep. SGP
|
12 | 6 | (0,1,2,1,2) | 14 |
| 7 /11 | Scandinavian SGP
|
14 | 4 | (1,1,1,1,X) | 8 |
| 8 /11 | Latvian SGP
|
9 | 7 | (2,3,0,X,2) | 13 |
| 9 /11 | Polish SGP
|
4 | 10 | (3,3,1,1,0) +2 +0 | 5 |
| 10 /11 | Italian SGP
|
9 | 8 | (T,3,1,2,2) | 11 |
| 11 /11 | German SGP
|
11 | 7 | (1,2,1,2,1) | 6 |
| permanent speedway rider | |
| wild card, track reserve or qualified reserve | |
| rider not classified (track reserve who did not start) |
See also
References
- ^ Świat Żużla, No 2 (78) 2009, page 15, ISSN 1429-3285
- ^ Oakes, P.(2004). British Speedway Who's Who. ISBN 0-948882-81-6
- ^ "Nicholls wins British crown". Sky Sports. 6 June 2011. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
External links
Template:Eastbourne Eagles speedway team 2008 Template:Coventry Bees speedway team 2007