THE rapidity of Dan Bewley’s rise through the speedway ranks has been quite remarkable and the teenager is hopeful that home-track advantage will prove decisive as the British go into the semi-finals of the FIM U21 World Cup.
Bewley plies his trade with Glasgow Tigers and it is on the Glasgow track that Great Britain, Australia, Czech Republic and Germany will battle it out for two available spots in the final, with the other two teams who will make up the final four coming from the second semi-final between Poland, Sweden, Finland and Latvia, which takes place in Riga in Latvia.
Bewley was born in raised in the north of England but it is Scotland that has developed him into one of the country’s brightest speedway talents. After beginning his motorsport career in motocross, Bewley decided to try his hand at speedway.
He tried the sport out at the home of Edinburgh Monarchs three years ago and immediately, was identified as a burgeoning talent. The capital team were desperate to sign Bewley, who was only 16 at the time, although the teenager admits he was somewhat reluctant to put pen to paper initially.
“I liked the look of speedway and wanted to give it a go,” the teenager said.
“I’d watched it for a few years before I tried it myself and it looked really fun. And when I did have a go, I really liked it right from the beginning and so things just went from there. Having done motocross before I tried speedway helped me a lot so the transition wasn’t too hard and that helped with riding the bike.
“I went up to Edinburgh for a practice and they needed a rider so it all just fell into place. I wasn’t really looking for a ride, it just happened. When they asked me to be in the team, I didn’t really want to do it to be honest – it was only my first season and I hadn’t ridden much speedway at all so I hardly knew anything about it.
“But I said yes and actually, it was great for me and that first season in Edinburgh brought me on a lot.”
Bewley then signed for Glasgow Tigers for his second season in the sport and if anything, his improvement accelerated once again. As well as riding for the Glasgow team, he also competes for English team Belle Vue in the Premiership, as well as making regular trips to Poland to compete for a team there. It makes for a hectic schedule but it is obviously paying off, with Bewley making a real statement by finishing second in the recent British Championships.
It was a result that surprised even himself and one that has been, he admits, a huge confidence boost.
“I didn’t have any expectations going into the British – I was just going there to enjoy it and I didn’t think I was even going to make the final,” he said.
“So to get second was great. Any successful meeting you have is good for you mentally and that one was very good for me.”
Having achieved such impressive results at such a tender age has led many observers to predict Bewley will achieve great things in the sport. But he remains entirely unperturbed by the expectation upon his shoulders.
“Whatever people are saying about me doesn’t really affect me,” he said.
“I’ve seen some of the comments and I’m not sure I agree with them all. But it’s nice for people to be so positive. When you’re racing, you don’t have much time in between races to think about things too much - that’s the good thing about speedway, you can’t dwell on anything.”
Bewley has Steve Lawson, who is Glasgow Tigers’ greatest-ever rider, as his mentor and it is, says the teenager, invaluable having someone who has done it all in the sport in his corner.
“It’s very helpful having him there for advice,” he said.
“If I’m doing something wrong or not riding properly, he can spot it really quickly and he’ll point it out and let me know what to change. It’s great to know I’ve got someone like him looking out for me. And when he gives you a thumbs-up, it’s good for your confidence because you know you must really deserve it.”
Lawson will be present this weekend in Glasgow for what promises to be a thrilling weekend of racing, and Bewley admits that while qualification for the final is the top priority, GB are going all out for the win.
“There should be a great atmosphere in Glasgow so I’m really looking forward to it,” he said.
“We want to get through to the final but it’d be really cool to win, especially with it being on my home track. It’ll be great to get through but it’d be extra-special to win.”
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