GLASGOW No 1 Richard Lawson came within one place of making the grand final at tonight’s British Final at Belle Vue.
The 30-year-old made the run-off after finishing fourth in the standings on a wet night at the National Speedway Stadium.
It was a slow start for the Cumbrian but he raced to two heat wins in his last two qualifying heats to finish strongly.
He made the gate in the run-off but was beaten to the second bend by Robert Lambert and then Steve Worrall charged underneath him on the third bend.
Lawson kept it wound on round the outside but with the track getting heavier, it was a difficult route back from that point.
The Tigers’ other representative Richie Worrall had a storming start to the meeting with a second and a win in his opening two.
But he struggled to keep that momentum going and ran two lasts and a second – meaning his night ended at the qualification stage on seven points.
In a thrilling finale Danny King, of Ipswich and Coventry, made a massive blast around the outside of Peterborough and Belle Vue’s Craig Cook to take the British Championship and secure the wild card place at the British Grand Prix in Cardiff. Robert Lambert – of Newcastle and King’s Lynn – was third with his North East team-mate Steve Worrall, also a Belle Vue rider, in fourth.