TESTING TIMES FOR BJARNE

Thursday 15th December 2011, 13:00

Grand Prix star Bjarne Pedersen says he chose the British Elite League over Sweden’s Elitserien to guarantee himself some testing time throughout the 2012 campaign.

The Ryde-born racer has signed a two-year contract with Birmingham and will also compete for Polish First Division outfit Gdansk and Danish Super League club Holstebro.

He was offered a deal with Swedish side Indianerna, but Pedersen opted to sit out the Tuesday night fixtures following his return to the World Championship after a three-year absence.

Racing in four countries and the Grand Prix series is an enormous undertaking for even the most professional of riders.

Many of the SGP elite have opted to sit out the British league due to its huge fixture list, which sees meetings staged on up to five different nights of the week.

But Pedersen wants to get some racing under his belt before heading to Auckland for the inaugural FIM New Zealand SGP on March 31. Given that the Polish and Swedish leagues will not have started by this date, Elite League riders could have a major advantage at Western Springs.

"I think it will be important for me to get some meetings done before the first Grand Prix in New Zealand."

- Bjarne Pedersen

The Danish international said: “I must admit that for a couple of minutes there were some questions over what I should do for this coming season.

“I was thinking ‘should I just do Poland, Denmark and Sweden and leave Britain out?’ But when it came down to it, I thought it would be very important to do the British league.

“I’ve got some fantastic sponsors over there and in the end, it was Sweden that went. I think it will also be important for me to get some meetings done before the first Grand Prix in New Zealand.”

Pedersen is also keen to make the most of having a guaranteed day with no meetings every week. He plans to spend the time testing.

The Poole asset added: “That was something I was missing this year. When you do Sweden, Poland, Britain and Denmark, the GP qualifiers and the Speedway World Cup, you’re flat-out all the time.

“There’s no time for any testing or practice and those are the things I need more of next season.”

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