Speedway (known as Dirt Track racing at the time) was first held at Monmore Green Stadium on 30 May 1928, arranged by the Birmingham Motor Cycle Club the meeting consisted of several feature races.[1] The first meeting to feature the Wolverhampton team name was an Inter–Town race against Manchester on 25 August.[2] After a series of challenge matches during 1929 and 1930, speedway would not return to Wolverhampton for twenty years.
1950s
During 1948 and the post-war optimism, record crowds were attending speedway events up and down the country. With towns keen to cash in on the boom, Wolverhampton's stadium owners applied to the local council for a track to be re-built at the original site. Australian Arthur Simcock set the ball rolling and was granted permission to promote speedway in Wolverhampton and finally his dream came true on 14 October 1950. The first to test the new track were some visiting Norwich riders, en route to a meeting followed by Wulfrunians defeating Sheffield 58-26.[3] Officially founded again in 1951, the team would ride as the Wolverhampton Wasps and they were admitted into the 1951 Speedway National League Division Three.[4]
The winter of 1952/3 was a tumultuous one for speedway in the Black Country when Cradley Heathens merged with the Wasps 1953 season. Wolverhampton were pleased with this 'promotion' and at one meeting supporters were 'locked out' after the capacity was reached. It was reported 12,000 fans turned up with many more scaling the walls. This was however short lived and the team enudred a series of poor results at the start of the 1954 season. A decision was made by the promotion and in early May of the same year, Wolverhampton closed its doors to speedway.[5]
From 1965, Wolverhampton competed in the inaugural British League, which was the clubs first season in the top tier of speedway.[8] The team then recorded successive mid-table finishes before two poor seasons in 1968 and 1969.[9]
1970s
George Hunter with Gary PetersonFinn Thomsen and Ole Olsen
In 1973, Wolves won the Midland Cup[11] and the following year reached the final.
The 1975 season was overshadowed by the death of Gary Peterson, killed in the home leg of the Midland Cup final.[12] Olsen then left after the 1975 season and Wolves spent the remainder of the decade battling in the lower half of the league table standings. However, one high point was the signing of Hans Nielsen in 1978, the 18-year-old Dane topped the team's averages in 1978 and 1979.[13]
1980s
Hans Nielsen continued to impress topping the league averages in 1980[14] but the team struggled and costs increased, resulting in promoter Mike Parker putting the riders on the transfer list and dropping down a division for the 1981 season.[15] The promotion was taken over by Dan McCormick for the 1981 season before Mike Parker returned but he was unable to form a team and Wolves would not race for two seasons.[16]
Promoter Peter Adams brought the team back for the 1984 season.[17] Wolves signed Sam Ermolenko in 1986 and supported by a group of Danes and Americans, the team became hard to beat. A third place finish in 1986 was followed by a second place finish in 1989.
1990s
Sudden Sam Ermolenko
Wolves won their first highest league title (and second ever title) in 1991, after winning the 1991 British League season. They were led by their American star Sam Ermolenko, who became the first rider to push former Wolves rider Hans Nielsen from the top of the averages after eight consecutive years at the top. The Wolves team relied on two more American riders, Ronnie Correy and Sam's younger brother Charles Ermolenko, in addition to Englishman Graham Jones to seal the title from Bradford.[18][19] The Wolves won the title for the second time in six years during the 1996 season, with Ronnie Correy being the sole survivor of the 1991 winning team. In a strange coincidence a new set of two brothers helped Wolves win the title, back in 1991 it was the Ermolenko brothers but now it was the Swedish Karlsson brothers. Peter Karlsson and Mikael Karlsson both scored heavily and ended the season with averages around the 10 mark.[20]
2000s
The Wolverhampton Wolves were the Sky Sports Elite League champions in 2002. Although they only finished 2nd in the regular season table they defeated Eastbourne Eagles in the play off final. It was Wolves third title success in 11 years and the Swedish Karlsson brothers, Peter and Mikael were once again integral to the Wolves team throughout the season.[21] Two years later in 2004, Wolves lost in the play off final.
In 2008, Parry's International Travel signed a deal with owner Dave Parry (a former Wolves rider). The team was managed by Peter Adams and promoted by Chris Van Straaten. The decade ended with a second place finish in the league standings before regaining champion status in the 2009 season, beating the Swindon Robins 95-90 on aggregate in the 2009 play-offs.[22]Freddie Lindgren was the star of the 2009 team but veteran Peter Karlsson and 19-year-old rider Tai Woffinden both scored heavily.
2010s
Peter Karlsson
Freddie Lindgren
Another play-off final defeat ensued in 2010 and a third place finish was sealed in 2013. The team became champions of the United Kingdom for the fifth time in 2016, beating the top of the table finishing Belle Vue Aces. Led by Tai Woffinden and Freddie Lindgren, they won by an 18-point margin at home in the first leg by beating the Belle Vue Aces 54-36, the second leg was a win for Belle Vue of 50-42, meaning victory for the Wolves by a 10-point margin with the aggregate scores 96-86.
Wolves lost another play-off final in 2017 in extraordinary circumstances, having won the first leg against Swindon, away from home 47–43, they lost their home leg 47–42, with promoter Peter Adams gracious in defeat, stating that speedway was the winner.[23]
2020s
After the leagues were cancelled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the team finished 2nd and 4th respectively in 2021 and 2022 but were beaten in the play offs. In 2023, it was announced by the Monmore Green Stadium owners Entain that the venue would only be used by greyhound racing during 2024.[24] The team disbanded after the 2023 season.
Guy Allen Ermolenko is a former motorcycle speedway rider. During his career he was known as Sam Ermolenko. In 1993, he won the Speedway World Championship.
Peter Gunnar Karlsson is a Swedish former motorcycle speedway rider. He was twice Swedish champion and a three times World Cup winner. He earned 40 caps for the Sweden national speedway team.
The 2005 Elite League speedway season was the 71st season of the top division of speedway in the United Kingdom and governed by the Speedway Control Bureau (SCB), in conjunction with the British Speedway Promoters' Association (BSPA).
The 2004 Elite League speedway season was the 70th season of the top division of speedway in the United Kingdom and governed by the Speedway Control Bureau (SCB), in conjunction with the British Speedway Promoters' Association (BSPA). Poole Pirates completed the double for the second year running. They were the first team to achieve this since Oxford Cheetahs in 1986.
The 2002 Elite League speedway season was the 68th season of the top division of speedway in the United Kingdom and in 2002 was governed by the Speedway Control Board (SCB), in conjunction with the British Speedway Promoters' Association (BSPA). It was the first time that playoffs were introduced to determine the champions.
The 1999 Elite League speedway season was the 65th season of the top tier of motorcycle speedway in the United Kingdom. It was the third known as the Elite League and was governed by the Speedway Control Board (SCB), in conjunction with the British Speedway Promoters' Association (BSPA).
The 1998 Elite League speedway season was the 64th season of the top tier of speedway in the United Kingdom and the second year known as the Elite League, governed by the Speedway Control Board (SCB) in conjunction with the British Speedway Promoters' Association (BSPA).
The 1997 Elite League speedway season was the 63rd season of the top tier of speedway in the United Kingdom. It was the first season of a new league known as the Elite League and was governed by the Speedway Control Board (SCB), in conjunction with the British Speedway Promoters' Association (BSPA).
The 1994 British League season was the 60th season of the top tier of speedway in the United Kingdom and the 30th and final season known as the British League.
The 1993 British League season was the 59th season of the top tier of speedway in the United Kingdom and the 29th known as the British League.
The 1992 British League season was the 58th season of the top tier of speedway in the United Kingdom and the 28th known as the British League.
The 1991 British League season was the 57th season of the top tier of speedway in the United Kingdom and the 27th known as the British League.
The 1989 British League season was the 55th season of the top tier of motorcycle speedway in the United Kingdom and the 25th known as the British League.
The 1990 British League season was the 56th season of the top tier of speedway in the United Kingdom and the 26th known as the British League.
The 2010 Elite League speedway season was the 76th season of the top division of UK speedway and the 14th since its establishment in 1997.
The 2009 Elite League speedway season was the 75th season of the top division of UK speedway and the 13th since its establishment as the Elite League in 1997.
The 1996 Premier League season was the 62nd season of the top tier of speedway in the United Kingdom. It was also the second and last edition of two seasons, in which British speedway was competed as a single division. In addition there was a Conference League.
The 2013 Elite League speedway season was the 79th season of the top division of UK speedway and the took place between March and October 2013.
Steven Edward Worrall is a motorcycle speedway rider from England.
The 2016 Elite League was the 82nd season of the top division of speedway leagues in Great Britain. The Elite League ran between March and October 2016. The Poole Pirates were the defending champions after winning their third consecutive title in 2015. The lineup of teams for 2016 stayed the same as in 2015, with the same eight teams competing. It was the last time that the competition would be known as the Elite League.
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Peter Karlsson
Freddie Lindgren
