Loss of Paco proves too much

What a disappointing night it was at Armadale for the Monarchs, whose hopes of closing the 12 point gap on Redcar Bears in their knockout cup tie were hugely affected by the loss of Paco Castagna in heat 3. The home captain was helpless as Jordan Jenkins on his inside couldn't get turned going into the bend, resulting in both Castagna and Justin Sedgmen crashing as well as Jenkins.

Paco flew through the air and landed on the other side of the air fence. It was suggested that he was keen to come out for the rerun (and no doubt he was) but it did not prove possible. Injured ankles is the early diagnosis.

We can speculate all we like about what might have been with Castagna there, but injury rider replacement did not prove suitable compensation for Paco contributing four points with only Kye Thomson beating an opposition rider from a Castagna ride.

After an excellent personal performance Kye said "It was a shame what happened tonight with the captain going over the fence, that was nasty. I'm just glad he's on his feet even though they don't work so good at the moment. It put a bit of a damper on the team but we fought hard, it just wasn't enough and Redcar came on strong towards the end."

Of his own excellent form for both Monarchs and new Premiership side Northampton he added "It's a few years I've been here now and I've finally gathered up enough financial support to buy good equipment. It's really paying off and I'm enjoying being part of both leagues, I want to keep it going."

The top three home men were exemplary scoring 36 between them. Kye Thomson's first two rides featured the best overtaking of the night as he chased and passed first Jason Edwards and then Jake Allen, finishing the night by passing Allen again to back Dan Thompson for the match-saving 5-1 in heat 15.

Dan Thompson was everything that could be asked of a number one, losing only to fast Dane Klindt in heat 13, and Justin Sedgmen won three of his four races in smooth style.

There just wasn't enough in backup. Jonatan Grahn won heat 1 then faded and was unable to cover key heats 8 and 14, while the reserves were badly outgunned by the Redcar duo with a tally of 15-3 to the visitors from 9 rides each.

Redcar were extremely solid even though they provided just 5 heat winners to Monarchs' 10. Young guns Ace Pijper, Jody Scott and captain Jason Edwards were all impressive as was Jake Allen and it didn't matter too much that their top average man Nicolai Klindt was mediocre prior to heat 13.

Big Task Ahead Against Bears

After last week's first leg, The Monarchs' crucial KO Cup Quarter Final tie remains intriguingly poised and finely balanced. Redcar will attempt to defend a 12-point lead at Armadale – a deficit that feels just about recoverable, but only if the Monarchs display their best form on their home track.

In the corresponding league fixture last year, the Bears lost narrowly by 47-43, largely due to a hugely impressive 16 points from Danny King. Danny is a Plymouth rider this year, but Redcar's challenge will be spearheaded by former Gladiator Nikolai Klindt, who went one better than King with 17 points at Armadale last year, although he has been less consistent so far this season.

Monarchs' Paco Castagna, Jonatan Grahn and Kye Thomson all recorded multiple heat wins at Redcar in the first leg, with Thomson scoring a team-best 12+1, including a terrific ride from the back against Jake Allen to win Heat 15 and limit the aggregate damage. Kye's resurgence in the latter part of last year seems to have carried forward to the new season at Premiership level too after he scored 10+1 for Northampton at Ipswich last night.

Both teams have named unchanged line-ups, although the Bears have shuffled their riding order, with Jason Edwards moving to 5 and Jake Allen switching to 4, where he will come up against Monarchs' skipper Castagna in the important Heat 14. The Italian has been in good form this week for both Kings Lynn and Landshut. His performance, and that of partner Justin Sedgmen, will be important to the outcome of the tie, with Redcar tracking a solid middle order.

Monarchs' No 1 Dan Thompson turned 22-years-old this week and he had further cause to celebrate after he was named as one of the track reserves for the Manchester Grand Prix rounds in June. The tricky conditions at the ECCO Arena were not to his liking last week but he showed what he is capable of at Armadale in the home opener when he snatched a point for Edinburgh with a sensational last-bend pass of Glasgow's Chris Harris in Heat 15. His 11+1 last night helped Leicester to the Premiership KO Cup Final, so a repeat tonight would be very welcome.

The performance of young Bears reserve Jody Scott was probably the main difference between the teams in the first leg, scoring a brilliant 10+4 from the No 7 berth. Redcar's other reserve Jake Mulford will be one of Great Britain's representatives in the FIM World Long Track Championship this year, racing on tracks that are more than twice the size of Armadale, so it will be interesting to see how he handles the tight turns in West Lothian.

By contrast, the Monarchs' reserve pair had a difficult time at Redcar and will be looking to bounce back. On his home debut, Mitch Cluff probably got a closer look at the Armadale track than he would have liked after falling twice, although he bravely remounted in his last ride to get his laps in and should be stronger for the experience. Jordy Loftus managed a steady 6+2 in that match as the young Aussie continues to impress in his first full UK season.

With sunshine forecast, two fired-up teams on track and a semi-final place up for grabs, this should be a fascinating encounter which genuinely could go either way. It should be a thriller for the fans.

Maxicab KO Cup Quarter Final 2nd Leg, Friday 24th April 2026, 19:30, Armadale Stadium

ROSS ECO TECHNOLOGIES MONARCHS: Dan Thompson, Jonatan Grahn, Justin Sedgmen, Paco Castagna (captain), Kye Thomson, Mitch Cluff, Jordy Loftus.

REDCAR AGILIA BEARS: Nicolai Klindt, Ace Pijper, Jordan Jenkins, Jake Allen, Jason Edwards (captain), Jake Mulford, Jody Scott.