21-681: Brandon Stadium , also known as Coventry Stadium , is located 6 miles east of Coventry in Brandon , Warwickshire , England. It was the home of the Coventry Bees motorcycle speedway team. It also hosted BriSCA F1 Stock Car Racing on the 1st Saturday of the month from April through to November. From 1978 until early 2016 it intermittently hosted greyhound racing . As of 2023, it is closed and has become dilapidated after several fires, including an arson attack in 2022. Brandon Stadium's first speedway meeting took place on 29 September 1928, hot on
42-475: A 228-acre (0.92 km ) nature reserve with a wide variety of wildlife, especially pondlife. The reserve's visitor centre was opened in 1998 by Sir David Attenborough . Also to the west and north of Brandon Marsh is Brandon Wood , a community woodland owned and managed by a local group the Friends Of Brandon Wood. A grassy mound marks the remains of Brandon Castle , which is found to
63-472: A joint civil parish of Brandon and Bretford . Administratively it is part of the borough of Rugby . The River Avon passes just to the east of the village. Brandon is located upon the A428 road between Coventry , 5 miles (8.0 km) to the west, and Rugby , 6 miles (9.7 km) to the east. Just 1.5 miles (2.4 km) west of Brandon is the suburban village of Binley Woods and 1.5 miles (2.4 km) to
84-472: A number of old cottages and has a pub near the railway line. Just to the north of the village is Brandon Stadium , also known as the Coventry Stadium, which was used for speedway racing, greyhound racing , and stock car racing before being sold with the intention of house-building on the site. The stadium was home to the Coventry Bees speedway team. West of the village is Brandon Marsh ,
105-661: Is 409 metres (447 yards) in length. Brandon Stadium has been a popular stop for many high-profile speedway events in its lifetime. Under the old format of the Speedway World Championship events including the British Speedway Championship , the Commonwealth and Overseas finals as well as hosting the 1998 , 1999 and 2000 Speedway Grand Prix of Great Britain . The 'Brandonapolis' was an annual event at which featured some of
126-412: The 2009 English Greyhound Derby final. After Boxing Day 2009 the company went into liquidation and closed. Just three years later the well-known professional gambler and owner Harry Findlay re-opened Coventry until 2014 when it shut once again. Independent racing (unaffiliated to a governing body) then took place until January 2016. In May 2022, the stadium caught fire, causing substantial damage to
147-546: The Speedway promoter. Greyhounds returned in 2004, Simon Harris the Wimbledon Racing Manager was recruited at the end of 2003, the track was relaid in time for an April 2004 start. New kennels were built for the racing schedule of Wednesday, Friday and Saturday evening racing. The track received more good news when it was awarded the 2004 Trainers championship . Matt Dartnall trained two hounds through to
168-530: The east is the hamlet of Bretford . Brandon is separated from the much larger village of Wolston by a railway viaduct , but the two villages practically form a single entity. The railway viaduct dates from 1837 and was part of the original London and Birmingham Railway , which is now part of the Rugby–Birmingham–Stafford Line , which runs across the parish; Brandon and Wolston railway station operated here until 1960. The village contains
189-406: The grounds, with firefighters taking four hours to extinguish the fire. The cause was revealed as arson. Several months before the incident, an anonymous urban explorer had noted security concerns at the site that left it vulnerable to attack, and Brandon Estates had been previously accused of failing to keep the site secure. On 12 May 2023, the owners Brandon Estates appealed against the decision of
210-520: The heels of Coventry's first speedway venue at Lythalls Lane Stadium . Coventry were founder members of the National League from 1932 to 1933. The team were all set to return to action in 1934, but the Brandon proprietor C. W. East suddenly put the stadium up for sale. Despite challenge matches taking place during 1934 and 1936, league speedway would not return to Brandon for 15 years. Coventry
231-586: The local council refusing planning permission for 124 houses and a 3G football pitch on the site. In January 2024, Brandon Estates appeal for planning application to redevelop the site was dismissed by the Inspector. 52°23′33″N 1°24′6″W / 52.39250°N 1.40167°W / 52.39250; -1.40167 Brandon, Warwickshire Brandon is a small village in Warwickshire , England . Along with nearby Bretford , it forms part of
SECTION 10
#1732791991574252-474: The meeting Final. The BriSCA Formula 1 Stock Cars World Championship has been held here many times since 1960. The track was also used for BriSCA Formula 2 Stock Cars , V8 Hotstox , and various other forms of oval Motorsport including Bangers, Saloon Stock Cars, Ministox and Sprint Cars. The Sanderson family had the majority shareholding in Midland Sports since the end of the war . Charles Ochiltree
273-530: The south of the village. The castle was built in the 12th century by the de Verdon family. It was garrisoned in 1195, but was relatively short lived, as it was said to have been ‘pulled down’ in 1265 by the baronial troops from Kenilworth Castle , because John de Verdon was an active supporter of the king. Lythalls Lane Stadium Too Many Requests If you report this error to the Wikimedia System Administrators, please include
294-471: The stadium was sold to Avtar Sandhu in 2003. The stadium's capacity is approximately 12,500. The record attendance for Brandon stands at 24,000, and was set during a speedway meeting, the Brandonapolis of 1954 on a Thursday night, where they locked the gates and were turning away buses. The shale speedway track, which is inside the dog track is 301 metres (329 yards) in length while the greyhound track
315-729: The track and DeMulder went on to win the Trainer of the Year . During 1980 Iskagh Ruler (Tompkins) reached the English Greyhound Derby final. General Manager Ron Day died whilst in South Africa in 1981 and Sean Doyle (son of trainer Paddy Doyle) the young Racing Manager who had joined Coventry at the end of 1980 from Cradley Heath lost a battle with cancer. Mick Wheble the Racing Manager at sister track Leicester
336-594: The world's best speedway riders. It was postponed in 2011, due to a dispute with the BSPA. In 1991 , Brandon Stadium staged the Under-21 World Championship final which was won by Denmark's Brian Andersen . The stadium also hosted the last Speedway World Team Cup Final in 2000 (won by Sweden ) after having previously held the final in 1993 won by the United States . Sidecar speedway
357-570: Was a regular feature at Brandon Stadium with both team and individual meetings taking place. The most prestigious meeting was the Gold Trophy, Sidecars World Cup in 2010 and the British Open Championship from 1996 to 1999. The speedway track was also used for BriSCA F1 Stock Cars , having raced here continuously since 1954. The first meeting was held on 30 June, the first heat being won by Percy 'Hellcat' Brine, he also won
378-463: Was brought in as Racing and Operations Manager. Barbara Tompkins won the 1983 English Greyhound Derby for Coventry when Im Slippy was victorious at White City Stadium . Midland Sports finally sold sister track Leicester in 1984 to Barratts Homes and another Derby final appearance by a Tompkins trained runner (Murlens Slippy) was overshadowed by the imminent closure of the stadium to greyhound racing. It finished on 24 October 1986 but Ochiltree remained
399-475: Was devastated during the war and after the war the stadium freehold was acquired by the Sanderson's (Allan and wife Hilda) and it was not until 1948 that speedway returned. The track then ran under the company Midland Sports Stadiums (who also owned Leicester Speedway) and Charles Ochiltree promoted the Speedway and Stock Car Racing until his death in 1998. His son Martin then carried on promoting duties until
420-662: Was installed as the Managing Director of Coventry Stadium Ltd at Brandon despite only having a minor shareholding in the company. Alan Sanderson died in November 1968 resulting in Ochiltree becoming the dominant decision maker for the track and fourteen years after the closure of Lythalls Lane Stadium greyhound racing returned to Coventry in 1978. The racing arrived shortly after a failed Barratts Homes bid for sister track Leicester Stadium fuelling speculation that it
441-548: Was to be a replacement for Leicester. The first meeting took place on 19 September 1978 and facilities included a restaurant, a modern computerised tote and bars. The circuit was all sand and the hare was an 'Outside McGee' and Ron Day was installed as General Manager with Geoff Hammond as Racing Manager. A competition called the Eclipse returned to its traditional Coventry roots one year later. Leading trainers Geoff DeMulder, Barbara Tompkins and Natalie Savva all became attached to
SECTION 20
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