Tim Stone, Newport Wasps speedway promoter, has made an audacious attempt to land Italian short-track rider Marco Belli, pictured, after watching him compete in the third round of the United Kingdom Championships at the Hayley Stadium on Saturday night.

An enthusiastic Stone said after watching Belli, the championship leader after three rounds: "I offered him a contract. He is a speedway rider - you only had to look at his style. Everything about him was right and it would not take much to bring him on."

Peter Boast, one of the main driving forces behind short-track racing in Britain, said: "Marco is a dirt-track rider and has been the Italian champion but the sport has suffered a lapse in Italy which is why he is riding over here. He does look a speedway rider which is why Tim took a real fancy to him."

Belli, at Sheffield and King's Lynn in the first two rounds of the short-track championships, didn't drop a point, but he took a tumble on his way to qualifying for the final where he finished third.

Stone added: "He was very surprised I made the offer and I tried to get him to stay over for the Southern Trackers Riders Association meeting the following day, but he was off to America for a racing engagement. "At the end of the meeting he came across and thanked me. He has got my calling card and I said the door was open for him. "He would make a speedway rider and that is not only my opinion because other people made the same observation."

Stone is all set to stage another short-track and quad-bike racing meeting next summer. He said: "I thoroughly enjoyed it and so did those who attended, particularly the quad bikes."

The counter attraction of Niels-Kristian Iversen - a former Wasp - and Newport's Mads Korneliussen at the Danish Grand Prix P could have kept some potential spectators at home.

Wild card Iversen finished on seven points, just missing out on a semi-final place.

Reserve Korneliussen did not get a ride.

l There are few Italian riders in British speedway, but Newport fans watched Hull's recent signing Simone Teranzani while team-mate Emiliano Sanchez, from Buenos Aires, rides on an Italian licence although last summer he rode with an English licence.

He has won both the Italian and Argentinian individual titles.

But the best known Italian of recent years is the former Reading star Armando Castagna, 12 times Italian champion. While he was at Reading they twice won the Premier League title. He also rode five times in the world finals and was also a Grand Prix rider.