TAI Woffinden was crowned British Under-21 Champion after a competitive meeting of high excitement at the Arena-Essex Raceway.

The 17-year-old Wolverhampton asset, who rides for Premier League Rye House, saw off a talented field to take victory in a dramatic final heat after his close rival Lewis Bridger bit the dust.

Eastbourne up and rising star Bridger had recovered well after surprisingly dropping two points in his second ride to reel off three more wins to add to his opening ride success.

The last of those successes included a win over Woffinden in the penultimate qualifying heat of the night.

The duo both took the automatic qualifying slots direct into the Grand Final and ensured early choice of gate positions in their bid for overall supremacy.

Adam Roynon and Ben Barker joined the pair in the Final and Bridger gated quickly from gate 2 to lead into the first turn but drifted wide as Woffinden showed masterful track craft rode to drive inside his opponent. As Bridger tried to respond on the third bend, he lost all momentum as he tried to battle back , spun around and was clipped by the following Ben Barker The Stoke rider also fell but was soon on his feet and dusted himself down to take part in the three man rerun after Bridger had been excluded. Woffinden again led although he was tracked throughout by Birmingham's Adam Roynon and the second place and silver medal position on the podium was deserved reward for the rider who impressed with his entertaining style throughout the event.

There was a feast of good racing through the evening as the young hopefuls battled to reach the World Under-21 Final with half of the 16-man field enjoying at least one heat win. On a night of few spills, the most alarming was sustained by Rye House rider, Danny Betson, whose crash down the home straight in heat 12 raised some initial concerns however after lengthy treatment, he was able to avoid a hospital trip but was left nursing bruises.

Qualifying scorers: Lewis Bridger (Eastbourne) 13, Adam Roynon (Birmingham) 13, Ben Barker (Stoke) 11, William Lawson (Edinburgh) 11, Steve Boxall(Belle Vue) 10, Joe Haines (Workington) 9, Jack Roberts (Buxton) 9, Josh Auty (Redcar) 8, Sean Stoddart (Newcastle) 6, Lee Smart (Birmingham) 5, Charles Wright (Workington) 5, Daniel Halsey (Rye House) 3, Harland Cook (Sittingbourne) 2, Lee Strudwick (Rye House) 1, Danny Betson (Rye House) 0.