Richard Hall (speedway rider)

Richard Hall
Born (1984-08-23) 23 August 1984 (age 40)
Northallerton, England
NationalityBritish (English)
Career history
Great Britain
2001-2002Newcastle Diamonds
2003–2005, 2009–2010
2012–2013, 2016
Sheffield Tigers
2006–2007, 2014, 2016Peterborough Panthers
2008, 2011Scunthorpe Scorpions
2011Leicester Lions
2014, 2017Redcar Bears
2015Berwick Bandits
2017Cradley Heathens
Sweden
2007Västervik
Poland
2008-2009Lublin
Team honours
2001Premier League Champion
2006Elite League Champion
2015World Longtrack Team Champion


Richard James Hall ,(born 23 August 1984) is a former motorcycle speedway rider from England.[1][2][3][4]

Career

Hall riding at Leicester in 2011

Born in Northallerton, North Yorkshire, Hall began his career with the Newcastle Diamonds, making his debut in the Premier League in 2001, before making his Conference League debut in 2002. Hall rode in the Premier League for Newcastle in 2002, recording an average of 1.52,[citation needed] but managed an average of 7.49 in the Conference League with the Newcastle Gems. Hall spent 2003 without a Premier League ride but he was ever present for Sheffield Tigers in the Conference League, averaging 8.46 a meeting. He also rode five matches for the Boston Barracudas in the Conference Trophy, and eight matches for the Coventry Bees in the British League Cup.

His good form saw him earn a place in the Sheffield Tigers team for 2004, where he averaged 5.55 from 47 meetings. He averaged over five once again in 2005 but in a surprise move he was signed by the Peterborough Panthers for 2006 to ride in the Elite League. In 2006, Hall recorded a 4.54 average and the Panthers won the Elite League Championship with Hall playing a vital role in the second leg of the play-off final.[5] He returned to the Panthers in 2007 but his season was cut short after receiving a fractured pelvis and broken ankle in the Garry Stead Benefit Meeting at Sheffield, a few days after being dropped by the Panthers.

Hall moved from the Elite League team Peterborough Panthers at the end of the 2007 season to captain the Scunthorpe Scorpions in their first season in the Premier League in 2008. In 2008, Hall rode for the Scunthorpe Scorpions in the Premier League. He signed for Sheffield for the 2009 season. In 2011 he joined Leicester Lions as team captain, although he was released mid-season, rejoining Scunthorpe Scorpions. In 2012 he signed for the Sheffield Tigers. In 2014, Hall started the season with Redcar but received a 30-day ban for kicking Scunthorpe's Josh Auty, and was replaced by Poland's Rafal Konopka. Hall sat out of British speedway until a brief, unsuccessful spell with the Peterborough Panthers later that year.

In 2015, Hall signed for Berwick Bandits[6] before riding as part of the British team with Andrew Appleton, Glen Phillips and James Shanes that won the world championship gold medal at the 2015 Team Long Track World Championship.[7] It was the first time that Britain had won the event.[8][9][10]

World Longtrack Championship

Grand-Prix Years

  • 2004 - 3pts, 25th Overall (1 gp app)
  • 2009 - 39pts, 12th Overall (5 gp app)
  • 2011 - 50pts, 14th Overall (6 gp app)
  • 2013 - 96pts, 3rd Overall (6 gp app)
  • 2014 - 65pts, 4th Overall (4 gp app)
  • 2015 - 44pts, 8th Overall (4 gp app)
  • 2016 - 61pts, 6th Overall (5gp app)

Best Grand-Prix Results First

Challenge Best

World Longtrack Team Championship

Hall competing in grasstrack during 2003

European Grasstrack Championship

Other Honours

  • British Junior Sand Racing Champion,
  • British Intermediate Sand Racing Champion – 2 times holder
  • ACU National Grasstrack Challenge Champion

References

  1. ^ Oakes, P.(2004). British Speedway Who's Who. ISBN 0-948882-81-6
  2. ^ "2008 Rider index, Richard James Hall" (PDF). British Speedway. Retrieved 15 February 2023.
  3. ^ "Hall, Richard". Polish Speedway Database. Retrieved 15 February 2023.
  4. ^ "ULTIMATE RIDER INDEX, 1929-2022" (PDF). British Speedway. Retrieved 27 June 2023.
  5. ^ "Hall hoping to win another title with Panthers". Peterborough Today. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  6. ^ "Bandits sign Hall as replacement for Crang". The Southern Reporter. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  7. ^ "Hall wins World Long Track Championship with GB". The Southern Reporter. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  8. ^ "World Longtrack Championship". GrasstrackGB. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  9. ^ "World Team Long Track Championship". Edinburgh Speedway. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  10. ^ "FIM Team World Long Track Championship". ACU. Retrieved 14 February 2023.