Speedway: Hometown heroics on cards

RARE APPEARANCE: Bradley Wilson-Dean is eagerly awaiting his first taste for almost two years of racing at home tonight. PHOTO/Duncan Brown

HAWKE'S BAY'S professional solobike rider Bradley Wilson-Dean will be on a home track redemption mission at Meeanee tonight.

"It's been 23 months since us solo riders have raced at home here and I want to get Jason back," Wilson-Dean said referring to Gisborne's Jason McKay.

At the last Hawke's Bay champs in March, 2014 McKay won the final after Wilson-Dean spilled and finished second. The country's 2NZ after finishing second to 10-time national champion, New Zealand-based Englishman Jason Bunyan, by a couple of bike lengths at the Auckland-hosted nationals three weeks ago, Wilson-Dean, 21, believed McKay will provide him with his toughest competition at the Hawke's Bay Summer Classic meeting tonight.

"I've been beating Jason lately but here at home is where I really want to beat him ... that last loss to him here has been nagging me for too long now," Wilson-Dean explained.

At least eight riders are expected to get five four-lap races on the Meeanee Bull Ring. Other starters will be Wilson-Dean's father Darrin Wilson, a veteran of 33 years in the class, cousin Aaron Wilson, Graham Wedlake, Michael Pattey and Dennis Hall from the Bay and Gisborne's Bryce Rickard.

"We were hoping to get more starters but there is a meeting in Auckland on Sunday. I could have gone to Auckland too but I've opted for a training camp in Ohakea," Wilson-Dean said.

Tonight's meeting will be one of at least three Wilson-Dean does before returning to Britain to start a one-season Premier League contract with the Somerset Rebels. Next week he will travel to Invercargill to represent Auckland in a teams event against Christchurch and Invercargill and on February 27 Wilson-Dean will race in the Hawke's Bay champs at Meeanee.

"I haven't raced at Invercargill that often and because next year's nationals will be raced there it will be good to go there next weekend and get a feel of the track again," Wilson-Dean said.

A former Karamu High School student, Wilson-Dean, scored his Somerset Rebels contract after an outstanding season last year with the Eastbourne Eagles in the National League. The two-time New Zealand under-21 rider became the Eagles No 1 rider and was the top National League rider for three months.

Among his highlights was winning the Champion of Sussex title in his fourth week with the team and scoring a 15-point maximum against Kings Lynn.

One of his long-term goals is to race in the World Grand Prix for the class.

"I'll do some qualifying races this year. I'm not expecting to qualify but that's the aim one day ... this year it's all about getting experience at that level," Wilson-Dean said.

It won't be a surprise if Wilson-Dean does exceed expectations and qualify. After all, he didn't expect to score a Premier League contract in Britain after just one season in the National League.

"I thought I would spend a couple of seasons in the National League before making the step up," Wilson-Dean said.

He will return to Britain next month and race and race almost every day until October.

Wilson-Dean will be one of several Hawke's Bay competitors who have performed well in recent national events who will be honoured in a parade of champions at the start of the meeting. The others will be the Hawke's Bay Hawkeyes superstock team which won last weekend's ENZED Teams Champs in Palmerston North, national stockcar champion Jason Penn and 3NZ in the streetstock class Darren Melling.

Other classes in action tonight in addition to the solobikes will be superstocks, stockcars, streetstocks, production saloons and sidecars.