MARK PLUMMER catches up with one of best riders in the business for his latest ‘Friday Feature’ . . .
It’s good to be NIELS KRISTIAN IVERSEN right now - the current World number three is the best rider in the best team in British speedway.
The Danish ace sits proudly at the top of the Elite League averages while his King’s Lynn Stars team have stormed clear at the summit of the standings following a record-breaking run of results.
Lynn have reeled off 14 successive victories, suffered only one defeat and taken points from all 17 Elite League fixtures ahead of a top-of-the-table showdown at second-placed Lakeside tonight (Friday).
The Stars team is a fine blend of international class (Iversen, fellow GP rider Kenneth Bjerre, their fellow Dane Nicklas Porsing and Aussie skipper Rory Schlein) and relatively local talent (Rob Lambert and the terrific Fast Track reserve duo of Lewis Kerr and Lewis Rose are all virtually on the doorstep).
It all adds up to a septet which has become nigh-on unstoppable at their Norfolk Arena home while also picking up points for fun on the road.
But you won’t catch Iversen getting excited. His focus on the long game . . .
“I’ve been asked a few times about what is the secret to our success,” said Iversen, an Elite League winner in the most memorable fashion with Peterborough back in 2006. “The simple answer is that there isn’t one.
“We just have a good team full of riders who have been going well and that’s all there is to it.
“We’ve managed to keep on winning despite having injuries and the odd off-night. When one rider is out or another struggles, the other guys just step up.
“Rory has been a really good captain and takes the job very seriously. He spends a lot of time talking to the other guys and making sure that the spirit in the team is good.
“Records are great and being top of the league is brilliant, but it is what happens at the end of the season that matters.
“The play-offs are still a long way away and we saw what happened to Birmingham last season. They were the top team in the standings, but then got steam-rollered in the Grand Final.
“We just have to keep doing what we’re doing and make sure we are in the best possible form when September and October come around.
“The support we get has always been great. There isn’t a lot of top sport in King’s Lynn so it would mean a lot to the whole town if we could win the title.”
Iversen surely has one of the most settled routines of any speedway rider. He is in his fourth year at Lynn and Polish club Gorzow, and is racing at Indianerna in the Swedish Elitserien for a fifth successive season.
And that continuity is just the way he likes it as he plots his route around Europe from his British base. Iversen lives on the outskirts of Peterborough with partner Laura and their baby daughter Nicole.
“It is important to be at good clubs and I’m very lucky in that respect,” added Iversen. “When you are happy somewhere, there is no reason to change.
“I’ve been able to get into a good routine over the last few years and everything just fits into place.
“Living near Peterborough is perfect. It is great for travelling - Lynn is close and the airports are close.
“We will probably move back to Denmark when my racing career is over, but we’re very happy where we are now.”
It has not all been plain sailing for Iversen this season though.
He has suffered six engine failures – a situation which has cost him plenty of points and plenty of pounds.
“It’s been a nightmare to be honest,” continued Iversen. “Six broken engines is a lot and it is hard to get comfortable with machinery when that is happening.
“I had two of the engines blow in two races during a meeting in Poland. The first one went on the way back to the pits after my opening ride and the second packed up while leading my next race.
“My team-mate Matej Zagar lent me one of his bikes for my next ride, but I didn’t really get on with it so that was my meeting over. All the way to Poland for two points and two broken engines.
“Days like that are hard to take. It really drags you down because you know you’ve let your team and the supporters down.”
But days like that are also rare for a rider who has become one of the sport’s classiest acts in recent years.
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