Jason Lyons

When you say the name “Jason Lyons,” you hear “Mr Belle Vue!”
 Despite starting his British career with Glasgow, the Aussie has only ever really been associated with the Aces.

 Hailing from Mildura, a country town in Victoria famous for its speedway heritage, Jason was inspired by his father Rodney, a former rider, to enter the speedway scene.
 It was during an International meeting in 1990 in his Australian home town, where he was introduced to former Ace and then Glasgow rider Sean Courtney.  Before he knew it, Jason had made his breakthrough into British Speedway by signing for the Tigers.
 He made an immediate impact at the Ashfield track and was voted 1991 Rider of the Year during his short time with the Scottish outfit.  He was also placed third in the World Under 21 Championships during the same year.
 He made it two very successful years for Glasgow, before moving to Kirkmanshulme Lane in 1992, where he began his long alliance with the Aces.
 The Urmston based rider improving meeting by meeting and Lyons was an integral part of the League winning Aces in 1993.

 During his twelve popular years at Belle Vue, Lyons also continued his involvement in domestic competitions in Australia.  He finished runner up in the Victorian Championships in ’91, ’92, ‘94, ‘95, and ’96, before he finally stood at the top of the rostrum winning the title in ’97, ’98 and ‘99. 
 He’s also appeared in twelve Australian Finals and has been placed runner up in ’93, ’94, ’98, ’99 and more recently in 2004 behind Leigh Adams.  In fact, Jason has played catch up to Adams in four of his five final appearances.  But the two Aussies do have something in common, as Lyons shares the Australian Best Pairs Championship with Adams which they won in 1992 and still hold today, as it’s never been contested since.

 Amongst his many achievements, Jason has some highlights to his career, including being crowned the 1998 winner of the Overseas Final of the World Championships.  Another pinnacle of his career was his superb riding for his home country in 1999, which saw them win the World Team Cup Championship at Pardubice in the Czech Republic in 1999.  He was also crowned the South Australian Champion in the same year.

 The following year ended in uncertainty when Lyons received a nasty hand injury.  He was later to undergo both hand and shoulder surgery during the closed winter season, missing out on the majority of domestic meetings Down Under. 
 The lack of practice resulted in a troubled start to the 2001 season at Belle Vue.  One of the usual heat leaders, Lyons found himself slipping into the bottom end of the Aces’ averages and he spent the first month in the reserve berth. 
 He recovered to a mid team place and later went on to win the Inter Continental Final for the second time.  He also celebrated his testimonial meeting at Kirkmanshulme Lane on 12^th August 2001, despite it almost being a total wash out.

 Jason was again part of Australia’s World Cup winning side during the 2002 season before achieving his dream of appearing in the first ever Australian Grand Prix at Sydney’s Olympic Stadium, after getting a late wild card entry.  In total Jason has appeared in no less than eleven Grand Prix. 
 It wasn’t far into the 2003 season, when the Aces crowd witnessed Lyons escape from a sickening crash at Kirky Lane, which saw him go head on through the safety fence at high speed.  Dazed and severely shaken, Jason made a remarkable escape from serious injury.
 2003 would not only see Lyons make his last appearance in the Grand Prix but also his last ride in Aces colours, after the Belle Vue promoter John Perrin decided not to include him in his 2004 programme.  Despite finishing on an average just under 8, it was his dip in form that had decided it for Perrin and Jason was offered on a loan deal to Elite League rivals Poole. 
 But it proved to be an unsettling move for Jason, who struggled for form and consistency at the Dorset track.  In fact, his average dropped low enough to allow him to drop into the Premier League, which is what he did after three months with the Pirates, by signing for struggling Newcastle.

 With his experience, Jason became one of the most distinguished riders to go into the Premier League and he later admitted that the competition was ‘too easy’.
 But his time at Brough Park allowed him to restore his reputation.  He scored eight points on his Diamonds debut at Edinburgh and reached double figures in all his other twenty appearances, including six full and one paid maximum, greeting the chequered flag in 54 of his 64 races. 
 A firm favourite with Belle Vue fans, it seemed a return to the Manchester track would be inevitable for Jason and winning the Cumberland Classic meeting certainly impressed the new Aces management team.

 Now 34, Lyons is a rider to depend upon; a great team man with a great level of world class experience, who’s heart has always belonged to the Aces.