SPEEDWAY talent Sam Peters was praised by father Martin for a tangible improvement after his latest performance at round five of the British Youth Championships at Leicester.

Martin, co-promoter of Weymouth Wildcats, said his son “was a lot quicker” at the meeting, which was cut short after a fellow rider was taken to hospital following a heavy crash.

Consequently, Sam only raced three times rather than four, but did pick up a second place finish in his second ride of the day.

And the signs of improvement for the youngster were there, with Martin admitting “something has clicked” for the Weymouth ace.

“Sam took two points in those three rides and he was sliding round the entire corner. I was like ‘where did this come from?’ He was a lot quicker.

“He doesn’t need to do anything else, just needs to keep that up. He’s definitely got faster. Something has clicked and he’s improved.

“He’s done really well in the last month. That’s what it’s about, the improvement of his riding rather than scoring points,” Martin told Echosport.

Sam is a regular attendee at the Wildcats’ meetings and Martin feels some of the senior riders’ knowledge may be rubbing off on him.

He said: “Just seeing the different things would help and some of the other riders do come and talk to him, giving him pointers. Maybe that has started to take effect and work for him.”

n Martin would like to thank Somerset’s Debbie Hancock and Gary May for allowing Sam to practice at the track free of charge.

n Sam went on to score two points at the next meeting in Redcar and is scheduled to compete in the next round at Sheffield's Belle Vue track on Saturday, August 5 (6pm).