BELLE VUE will now host a spectacular FIM Grand Prix double-header in 2025 - as Cardiff has been axed from the speedway calendar.
The Manchester venue is set to stage two rounds of the World Championship series next season on June 13 and 14.
Following the decision to leave the previous home of the British GP at the Principality Stadium, the National Speedway Stadium will make history with two rounds of successive nights for the first time in the UK.
Belle Vue CEO Mark Lemon said: “As a club we are proud to be hosting the first ever Speedway Grand Prix of Manchester in 2025.
“We’re delighted to have been approached by Warner Bros Discovery Sport to stage a second round at the National Speedway Stadium for what will be an epic weekend of World Championship Speedway in Manchester.
“With this latest advancement, we’re working on finalising capacity to ensure plenty of spectators can enjoy two rounds in Manchester.
“We will be finalising pricing for the two-day events with the aim of going on-sale in the new year.”
Spectators keen to receive on-sale dates first can register interest on the Belle Vue Speedway website to be informed of those key on-sale dates and ticket information.
Jean-Baptiste Ley, Motorsport Events Director at WBD Sports, said: “Firstly, I would like to thank all our partners who have helped us to stage a fantastic sporting event at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff in recent years.
“I would also like to place on record that Warner Bros. Discovery Sports remains committed to delivering an action-packed, engaging 2025 FIM Speedway GP series that can be enjoyed by millions of fans.
“In 2024, we had record numbers of fans watching the FIM Speedway GP series on our platforms and a host of sold-out events, as well as staging racing in front of nearly 50,000 fans at PGE Narodowy in Warsaw (Poland), the world’s biggest speedway attendance in 2024.
“In 2025, we are incredibly excited to bring the FIM Speedway GP series to the iconic National Speedway Stadium in Manchester, a true heartland of the sport, meaning British fans can still watch their favourite riders live and in-person next season as part of an exciting double-header.
“The difficult but necessary decision to replace Cardiff on the 2025 calendar, made in close consultation with the FIM, has not been taken lightly. However, a combination of logistical challenges, rising costs impacting the event and its contributing stakeholders, and declining attendances have prevented us from positioning Cardiff as an event that met commercial, or spectator attendance targets post-Covid.
“It is a decision we have made for commercial reasons and a move that ensures the long-term sustainability of the series.
“We will continue to deliver on our plans to capitalise on the popularity of speedway elsewhere and we support the sustained expansion of the sport at all levels of the SGP pyramid – ensuring we provide an even more compelling product for fans while helping the sport to grow even further.”
Words by Holeshot Media.
Images by Taylor Lanning.