The cream of Australia’s young speedway riders will be in action at Mildura’s Olympic Park Speedway next Saturday, 16^th January when the SportZprint 2010 Australian Under 21 Speedway Championship is conducted at the famous venue.

Many of the riders were engaged in the senior Solo championship meeting, the last of the three rounds was held at the Newcastle Showgrounds last weekend, where local rider, Justin Sedgmen, knocked the series leader and anticipated winner, Troy Batchelor, from his perch, by thrashing him in heat four, which put paid to his chances of the Title. A third place in that heat behind Sedgmen and fellow local, Cory Gathercole, was enough to relegate Batchelor.

A strong field on riders have nominated for the Under 21 meeting, which will feature the current World Under 21 Champion, Darcy Ward, from Queensland. Ward was an unexpected winner of the World crown, taking the Title in Croatia, from a well fancied local and a much favoured British rider. Ward has a couple of compatriots in Josh Grajczonek and Tyson Nelson in the field, but the current field is jam packed with young talented riders from NSW.

The large group of New South Welshmen includes, Sam Masters, Richard Sweetman, Hugh Skidmore, Michael Penfold, Taylor Poole, Mason Campton and Todd Kurtz.

These riders will be pitted against the Victorians, who include local riders, Ryan and Justin Sedgmen, Jake Anderson and Dakota North and the lone Englishman, Josh Auty.

This group of sixteen will contest the SportZprint Australian Under 21 Title as a one of meeting, with the top selection being able to qualify further onto the 2010 World Under 21 scene, where hopefully the Australians can dominate and have similar success to 2009, when Ward was so successful.

The NSW contingent is a very slick group as Sam Masters has shown in the senior Australian Championship series. Masters has acquitted himself very well in his first senior title, showing superior skills, even before he has experience in the tough British League. Sweetman and Skidmore already have that experience and will want to use it to their best advantage while Poole has good speedway breeding, which should give him some advantage at the meeting.

The two local Mildurians, Ryan and Justin Sedgmen, should acquit themselves well, especially Justin, who has had a most successful Australian senior Title campaign already, taking some significant scalps in each round and finding himself in eighth place overall in the series, which is a wonderful effort in his first attempt at the senior Title. Sedgmen and ward are the only two teenagers to finish in the top eight of the Australian Title.

Jake Anderson, from Shepparton is the best performed of the two Goulburn Valley riders, qualifying through into a reserve position ahead of Dakota North, who is a former Australian Under 16, or Junior Champion.

The other rider, who will give all of this fellow competitors some anxious moments is the classy, Josh Auty, from England, who has shown some good form at Olympic Park twice already this season. Auty is a real goer, so all riders will have top be aware of his range of skills as he could easily finish on a podium position.

Download the press release: PRE – 2010 SportZprint Aust Und 21 Title (local)