Wolverhampton Speedway employers pledge to discover brand-new venue

ByNick Clitheroe & Clare Lissaman
BBC News

Speedway club bosses have pledged to discover a brand-new venue after news they can not remain at their home of 96 years.

Wolverhampton Speedway said on 17 April they were devastated their occupancy arrangement for Monmore Green would not be extended beyond this promotion code season.

About 17,000 individuals have now signed a petition calling for it to be saved.

But Wolves promoter Chris Van Straaten stated the "fantastic" support had actually resulted in talks with authorities about a brand-new site.

"The fact that this petition has actually been signed and got such a substantial quantity of support in just a few days is quite remarkable and I believe that's definitely been the influence and opened the door to these conferences for the club," he stated.

Site owner Entain has stated it will concentrate on greyhound racing but comprehends fans and the club will be "disappointed".

Mr Van Straaten, who took over running the club from his father in 1986, stated speedway was "an essential part of Wolverhampton folklore".

"My energy in the last few days has turned to offering a brand-new site where we can establish a Wolverhampton Speedway club and we can be the main occupants," he stated.

"I 'd like to produce our own venue, I 'd like to be the main holder of the tenancy and likewise develop something that is open 6 days a week to assist train motorcyclists; to train youngsters to take them off the streets."

He said he had handled to bring a stadium to Redcar and had acquired knowledge from that task.

"I 'd love to be in a position where I can bring a speedway stadium to the city of Wolverhampton," he said.

The response from people made him believe this promotion code was possible.

"The quantity of individuals that signed the petition has took my breath away. The assistance for this sport is quite remarkable," he stated.

Mr Van Straaten stated it would be an "immense" blow if it didn't occur, however included he was going to be positive and they had the rest of this year to try to discover a website.

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