Richard Lawson (speedway rider) explained

Richard Lawson
Nationality:British (English)
Birth Date:14 February 1986
Birth Place:Whitehaven, Cumbria, England
Career1:Great Britain
Years2:2009–2013
Career2:Workington Comets
Years3:2014
Career3:Redcar Cubs
Years4:2011
Career4:Peterborough Panthers
Years5:2013–2016, 2018
Career5:Lakeside Hammers
Years6:2015–2017
Career6:Glasgow Tigers
Years7:2017–2018
Career7:Somerset Rebels
Years8:2019–2021
Career8:Eastbourne Eagles
Years10:2019
Career10:Ipswich Witches
Years11:2020
Career11:Sheffield Tigers
Years12:2021–2022
Career12:King's Lynn Stars
Years13:2022–2024
Career13:Poole Pirates
Years14:2023–2024
Career14:Leicester Lions
Career15:Poland
Years16:2018
Career16:Opole
Years17:2023
Career17:Tarnów
Teamyear1:2018
Teamhonour1:tier 1 KO Cup winner
Teamyear2:2016, 2022
Teamhonour2:tier 2 League champion
Teamyear3:2016, 2022
Teamhonour3:tier 2 KO Cup winner
Teamyear4:2009
Teamhonour4:tier 2 Fours winner
Teamyear5:2010
Teamhonour5:Young Shield

Richard Lawson (born 14 February 1986) is a British speedway rider.[1] [2]

Career

He was born in Whitehaven, Cumbria.[3] After a successful junior career in motocross, which included winning the British 125cc championship in 2003, he rode professionally for Kawasaki before taking up speedway in June 2008. He made his competitive debut in the Conference League for Redcar Cubs before signing to ride for Workington Comets in the Premier League in 2009.[4] He was part of the Workington four who won the Premier League Four-Team Championship, held on 25 July 2009, at Derwent Park.[5]

He stayed with the Comets in 2010 and also signed for Elite League Wolverhampton Wolves as their number 8.[6] He remained with the Comets until the end of the 2013 season, and gained further Elite League experience in 2012 with Peterborough Panthers and in 2013 with Lakeside Hammers.[7] He signed to ride again for the Hammers in 2014 and opted not to re-sign for the Comets.

In 2015, Lawson moved to Glasgow Tigers in the Premier League, staying with Lakeside in the Elite League.[8] He finished fourth in the averages during the 2015 Premier League speedway season and would spend three seasons in Scotland from 2015 to 2017, winning the Knockout Cup for his club in 2016. He also rode for the Somerset Rebels from 2017 to 2018, winning the division 1 Knockout Cup during the SGB Premiership 2018. In 2019, he joined the Ipswich Witches and Eastbourne Eagles in division 1 and 2 respectively and had his 2020 season with Sheffield curtailed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2022, he rode for the King's Lynn Stars in the SGB Premiership 2022 and for the Poole Pirates in the SGB Championship 2022.[9] As part of the Poole team he helped them retain their tier 2 league and KO Cup double crown.[10] [11]

He signed for Leicester Lions for the SGB Premiership 2023 and SGB Premiership 2024 seasons.[12] He also re-signed and doubled up with Poole for both the 2023[13] and 2024 Championship seasons.[14]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2008 Rider index . British Speedway . 21 March 2023.
  2. Web site: ULTIMATE RIDER INDEX, 1929-2022 . British Speedway . 27 June 2023.
  3. "Rider Index", speedwaygb.co. Retrieved 23 November 2013
  4. Waterhouse, Ian (2008) "New Workington Speedeay Rider Richard Lawson Aiming to Make Big Impact", News and Star, 20 November 2008. Retrieved 23 November 2013
  5. Web site: 2009 Premier League Fours . You Tube . 8 July 2023.
  6. "Speedway: Richard Lawson agrees move to Wolverhampton", Daily Mirror, 23 January 2010. Retrieved 23 November 2013
  7. "Speedway Ace Richard Lawson Buoyed by Elite League Rides", The Cumberland News, 23 May 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2013
  8. Lanning, Phil (2015) "Speedway star Richard Lawson: I couldn't wait to join Glasgow Tigers' million dollar men", Daily Record, 14 January 2015. Retrieved 1 January 2017
  9. Web site: British Speedway rider profile . British Speedway . 29 September 2022.
  10. Web site: Pirates are Cup Kings . British Speedway . 16 October 2022.
  11. Web site: AWESOME WIN FOR LAWSON . British Speedway . 8 November 2022.
  12. Web site: Lawson joins Lions . British Speedway . 25 November 2022.
  13. Web site: Pirates stick with Lawson . British Speedway . 2 January 2023.
  14. Web site: Lawson returns to Pirates . British Speedway . 5 December 2023.