Lewis lifts crown after scare

The precocious Eastbourne 16-year-old eventually went through the card at Monmore last night to snatch the honours by a point from Scunthorpe's Tai Woffinden.

But that outcome hardly seemed likely in his very first outing when Bridger, a sluggish third, twice raised his left hand to indicate his engine was about to fail.

Somehow the machinery collected itself - and so did the rider, powering on to overhaul one of his main rivals in race leader Jack Hargreaves of Redcar.

After that the destination of the title, sponsored by Darlaston firm Kit Co, never seemed in doubt.

In his second outing Bridger pulled a routine Elite League move on Somerset's Ben Barker, pushing his rival wide on the first bend and sprinting away.

Race three brought a side by side back straight joust with Woffinden, but Bridger was in the preferred outside position and moved clear.

An upset threatened in his fourth race - but only briefly.

Rye House's Daniel Betson and Lee Smart of Plymouth made the start but a determined inside drive off bend four of the first lap accounted for both in one fell swoop.

All the while the impressive Woffinden - shrieked on by a contingent of female fans - had also accumulated a string of victories.

He made the vital start in heat 18 against Hargreaves to pick up his fourth win and was the "clubhouse leader" on 14 points as the unbeaten Bridger prepared to go out in the final heat of the programmed 20.

Harland Cook of Rye House had sprung to life with a brace of wins after two fourth places, and coming off the inside gate could well have been a spoiler.

But the effervescent Bridger promptly made his best start of the night and disappeared into the distance, seizing the crown with the fastest time of the evening and celebrating with repeated wheelies.

It left Hargreaves racing a run-off with Barker to emulate his 2005 position of third. But the Somerset rider got the drop from the start and was a comfortable winner.

There were several excellent races on a well-prepared racing strip, Betson going from first to third and then back again in a startling heat 17.

And Cleveland's diminutive Joe Haines, who still has another couple of years at this level, caught the eye in the eighth race when he rounded both Robert Mear of Rye House and Boston's Sam Martin with one sweeping manoeuvre.

Haines was unlucky not to have added a couple more points to his tally in heat 10. Jamie Westacott of Plymouth got so out of shape when lying second coming off the final bend that the pursuing Haines wound it on up the inside in a bid to snatch the place only to rear and fall.

He'll be back - and so will Bridger, who described Monmore as 'a great place to race' and is already looking forward to defending his title.

By Tim Hamblin

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