Mark Plaisted and his passenger Ben Pitt will be shooting for three FIM Oceania Speedway Sidecar Championship victories in a row at Gillman Speedway on Easter Saturday, April 4.
The duo, perennial Australian and FIM Oceania champions, have nothing left to prove in the cauldron of speedway sidecar competition but continue to be the reference point with their relentless speed and aggression.
Gillman is the next frontier for Plaisted and Pitt against a razor-sharp 16-outfit field that includes five other top 10 finishers from 2025 – Tyler Moon/Adam Lovell, Kym Menadue/Shane Dolan, Trent Headland/Jaxon Rayner, Brian Silvy/Glen Zaworski and Richard Stephens/Nick O’Brien – and a throng of other seasoned riders and passengers.
For Headland and Rayner, they’ll look back on the last major sidecar battle, the 2025 Australian championship in Bowen, with encouragement after going undefeated in the preliminaries before they were just bested by Plaisted/Pitt in an adrenalin-charged final.
Meanwhile, Moon/Lovell and Menadue/Dolan completed the FIM Oceania podium in 2025, proving they also have what it takes to go to the deep end in big events.
And, befitting the event’s Oceania status, two New Zealand teams will also be competing: Taylor Green/Callum Innes and Robert Miller/Jaxon Hannan.
The 16 teams competing in the Ray White Gawler-backed FIM Oceania Speedway Sidecar Championship are as follows:
The event will be livestreamed, with details posted on the official Gillman Speedway Facebook page from Thursday, April 2.
Gates open at 4pm on Saturday, with racing from 7pm. Parking is free.
Entry is $30 for adults, concession $25, and free for under 16s.
Keep an eye on Gillman’s Facebook page for more information on the 2026 Ray White Gawler FIM Oceania Speedway Sidecar Championship.