BELLE Vue moved six points clear at the top of the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership with an excellent 50-40 victory at King’s Lynn on Monday.
It was the ATPI Aces’ second win of 2026 at the Adrian Flux Arena and they achieved the result with a terrific all-round effort which saw them lead for the majority of the meeting.
An eight-point advantage after six races was cut back by the home side who levelled in Heat 10, but it was Belle Vue who went again in the closing stages, and they completed the meeting with two emphatic 5-1s to seal the points.
Jason Doyle dropped just one point from five rides and skipper Brady Kurtz also had three race wins, whilst the reserve department was also key with Tate Zischke and Will Cairns outscoring their Stars counterparts by 12 points to four.
The home side only led after Heat 1, which saw Kurtz quickly split Jan Kvech and Max Fricke, before Cairns and Zischke turned things in the Aces favour with a fine first lap to get the better of Jake Mulford for a 5-1 in Heat 2.
Peter Kildemand won a shared Heat 3 as Zach Cook was sent to the back by Chris Harris and Cooper Rushen, and the run of Belle Vue wins continued as a hat-trick of 4-2s strengthened their position.
Doyle defeated Ben Cook in Heat 4 with Cairns holding on for third place, before a stroke of misfortune for the home side saw second placed Harris suffer mechanical trouble on the last lap of Heat 5 enabling Norick Blodorn through to extend the lead to six points.
With Doyle getting the better of Fricke in Heat 6 and Zischke relegating Kvech to the back, the Aces appeared to be sat pretty with a 22-14 advantage.
King’s Lynn rallied with a 5-1 in Heat 7 as Mulford registered a surprise second place ahead of Kildemand and Cook, and the gap narrowed to two as Kvech and Jody Scott carded a 4-2 in Heat 8.
Doyle checked the Lynn momentum in Heat 9 as Harris passed Zischke for second place, but it was suddenly all level one race later when Fricke moved past Cook to link up with Kvech for a 5-1 to make it 30-30.
However, that was the end of the Stars’ recovery with Kurtz getting the better of Ben Cook on the first two turns of Heat 11 with a smart move, whilst Norick Blodorn added third place to put the visitors back ahead.
Zischke and Kildemand quickly cleared Scott for a share of the points behind Harris in Heat 12, and the two-point margin was maintained in Heat 13 as Fricke gated and kept the considerable challenge of Doyle and Kurtz at bay.
But Heat 14 proved massive for the Aces as Zach Cook, with only one point to that stage, hit the front and was joined by Zischke as they overcame the early challenge of Mulford for a match-clinching 5-1.
And to make things even better, Kurtz and Doyle made things even more convincing with another maximum in the final race, this time over Kvech and Fricke, to leave the winning margin at ten points.
Aces boss Mark Lemon said: “It was another really determined performance, we were solid from one to seven again and I’m really happy with that effort.
“I wouldn’t say we were in control of the meeting but we just had that edge that allowed us to put a bit more pressure on King’s Lynn, and it’s always nice when you can lead.
“They came back strongly, and for us Zach and PK’s pairing wasn’t the best tonight, but they came good at the end as we did as a team.
“Brady and Jason were outstanding, and it’s always nice when you’ve got those Heats 13s and 15s where the top two can deliver 5-1s for you.
“There’s a nice feel to the team. Obviously we lost Dan (Bewley) which everyone knows about, but we’ve managed to maintain our strength with Jason coming in, and what’s really good is the bottom end.
“Last year we were probably considered as having the weakest reserve pairing, whereas this year we could potentially be the strongest, without getting carried away.
“William is doing a great job, and Tate is improving meeting by meeting, so hopefully they can keep that up and it’s all beneficial for the team.”
The ATPI Aces are back in action on Thursday when they travel to Leicester, the team immediately below them in the league table.
KING’S LYNN 40: Jan Kvech 10, Max Fricke 8+1, Chris Harris 7, Ben Cook 7, Cooper Rushen 4+1, Jake Mulford 3+1, Jody Scott 1.
BELLE VUE 50: Jason Doyle 13+1, Brady Kurtz 12+1, Tate Zischke 8+2, Peter Kildemand 5+1, Norick Blodorn 4, Will Cairns 4, Zach Cook 4.
Picture: Ian Burt