Moment of hesitation costly for Tai Woffinden

The Wolverhampton man romped to a stunning 18-point haul and finished top scorer in the Terenzano event on Saturday but missed out on the overall victory to King's Lynn man Niels Kristian Iversen in the final.

But he closed the gap on championship leader Emil Sayfutdinov to just five points with four rounds to go – and admitted he was trying to see off the Russian in the final which allowed Iversen the outside run.

Said Woffinden: "I was thinking I should perhaps go to the outside because I knew it was working well but I also knew Emil was on the inside line.

"I said before the start of the meeting that I need to score as many points as I can and try and catch Emil up.

"I've done that and I'm really looking forward to the rest of the season now. Congratulations to Niels. This is his first Grand Prix win and I know how that feels."

Woffinden topped the scorechart and won his semi-final, but former Wolves rider Iversen had the last word.

Wolves skipper Freddie Lindgren scored six points.

Italian Grand Prix results: Niels-Kristian Iversen 13 (1st), Tai Woffinden 18 (2nd), Emil Sayfutdinov 10 (3rd), Matej Zagar 14 (4th), Jaroslaw Hampel 13, Nicki Pedersen 12, Darcy Ward 11, Leon Madsen 8, Tomasz Gollob 6, Antonio Lindback 6, Freddie Lindgren 6, Greg Hancock 5, Krzysztof Kasprzak 5, Martin Vaculik 5, Ales Dryml 4, Nicolas Covatti 2, Nicolas Vicentin 0.

FIM World Championship standings:?1 Emil Sayfutdinov (Rus) 107; 2 Tai Woffinden (GB) 102; 3 Jarek Hampel (Pol) 85; 4 Nicki Pedersen (Den) 83; 10 Freddie Lindgren (Swe) 61.

*Wolves' match at Belle Vue tonight has been called off due to a waterlogged track.

* Dudley ensured Knockout Cup progress yesterday – and then claimed a stunning National League away win.

They lost 47-43 at Buxton in the cup, but their 16-point lead from the home leg was more than enough to put them in the semi-finals.

Then, despite injuries to Ashley Morris (thumb) and Gareth Isherwood (shoulder) they won 50-38 at Stoke last night with Lewis Blackbird and Paul Starke outstanding.

At Buxton, Heathens let a narrow lead slip in the closing stages against a resilient home side, but team boss Will Pottinger said: "We're still through on aggregate.

"It was a superb win at Stoke considering Ash and Gareth only scored one point apiece.

"Lewis and Paul led the team superbly, both going unbeaten, and young Nathan Greaves did a great job in his last few rides as well."

Greaves' late flourish – twice beating Stoke's Kyle Hughes – proved crucial.

Buxton: Charles Wright 13, Adam McKinna 10, Liam Carr 9+1, Ryan Blacklock 7+1, Tom Woolley 6+3, Matt Williamson 2+2. Dudley: Lewis Blackbird 13, Ashley Morris 10+1, Paul Starke 8, Gareth Isherwood 6+1, Dan Greenwood 4, Nathan Greaves 2, Lee Geary 0.

Stoke: Luke Priest 10+1, Kyle Hughes 8, Lee Payne 7+2, Lee Smart 6+1, Benji Compton 4+2, Shaun Tedham 3+1. Dudley: Lewis Blackbird 15, Paul Starke 14+1, Nathan Greaves 7+2, Dan Greenwood 7, Lee Geary 5+1, Ashley Morris 1, Gareth Isherwood 1.

By Nigel Pearson