THE Buildbase Bees won their penultimate home Elite League fixture of the season to maintain their hopes of overhauling either Peterborough or Belle Vue.
And in doing so they condemned their local rivals Wolverhampton to a definite basement finish - although the two sides could yet meet again in the relegation race-off next month.
Bees put in a solid all-round showing against a Wolverhampton team who were overly-reliant on their top two, and the match was all-but won before Bees suffered the setback of losing Olly Allen in a Heat 11 clash with Fredrik Lindgren.
Chris Harris was two seconds faster than the other riders for the bulk of the meeting,and Ryan Fisher supplied the kind of determined riding at reserve that Bees fans have come to expect from their regular No.8 Ben Barker - all of which meant they could cope with the surprise of seeing Hans Andersen run a last place in Heat 1 and be on the wrong end of 5-1s in his last two rides.
Wolves actually took the lead with a 4-2 in that first race with Andersen being out-trapped by Lindgren and being forced to turn somewhat later than the other riders. Fisher led for much of the race after making a good start, but he was eventually overhauled around the outside at the end of lap three whilst Andersen could make no impact on Morten Risager.
Fisher put that experience to good use with another flying start in Heat 2 alongside Filip Sitera, who powered through from gate three and the Bees turned around the early deficit with a 5-1.
That was followed by more maximum points in Heat 3 courtesy of a fast ride from Harris and a fearless one from Billy Janniro who went inside Iversen on turn three only to be re-passed into lap two and then making his way back around the outside.
Allen trapped well off gate four to head home Jesper B Monberg with Sitera lifting at an unwanted time on turn two to allow Nicolai Klindt into third place, but Bees got their advantages going again in Heat 5 when Harris again stormed clear and Lindgren just got the better of Janniro in a close contest on the fourth bend.
Allen and Andersen team-rode to a 5-1 over Monberg in Heat 6, Andersen clamping Monberg on the inside and Allen sweeping around the outside - but a mechanical problem forced Allen onto a borrowed bike for Heat 7, which he took on Harris's bike.
That gave Iversen the advantage to secure six points from a tactical ride, but Bees were still happy enough with second and third places from Fisher and Allen over a struggling David Howe.
And the 6-3 to Wolves was more than cancelled out in Heat 8 when Klindt broke the tapes and replacement Ludvig Lindgren fell at the start of the last lap - but he was at the back anyway as Janniro and Sitera moved away from Risager to make it 32-19 to Bees.
Harris was out-trapped for the first time in Heat 9 as Monberg hit the front, but the Bees skipper swept round the Dane coming off turn four for a third win, and the 4-2 backed up by Janniro was repeated in Heat 10 with Andersen seeing off fellow countryman Iversen and Fisher again taking a point off Howe.
It meant Bees were in total control at 40-23, but their prospects for the rest of the night nosedived at the start of Heat 11 when Fredrik Lindgren, off the inside, moved straight into the path of Allen - who had actually been starting from as close to gate three as one possibly could when actually off gate two - and the Bees man was brought down heavily and clipped by team-mate Sitera.
Allen was able to walk away but was clearly hurt, and after examination was ruled out of the remainder of the meeting with rib injuries.
Bees having their two reserves in the race might have been a chance for Wolverhampton to take points back, but Risager lifted midway around the first and second bends and was grateful for the air-fence as he piled in at quite some speed.
Lindgren finally won the re-run at the third time of asking with Bees taking their 3-3, a result which was repeated in a terrific Heat 12 which saw Harris make his way inside Iversen in a textbook passing move at the start of the third lap.
With thoughts probably already turning to the upcoming match against Poole, Wolves took maximum points from Heat 13 with a good defensive ride by Monberg to beat Andersen, only for Bees to hit straight back with a superb second bend by Janniro and Fisher to go either side of Klindt, Howe's miserable night ending with a mechanical failure on the third bend.
It was Lindgren and Iversen who had the final word in Heat 15 as Andersen was again relegated to third place despite his efforts, and it also wrecked Harris's chances of a maximum as he was blocked completely at the back, but there was no doubt that Bees had finished comfortable winners despite ending the match with just five riders.
BUILDBASE BEES 53 Hans Andersen 0 2* 3 1 1 = 7+1 Simon Stead Rider Replacement Chris Harris 3 3 3 3 0 = 12 Billy Janniro 2* 1 3 1 3 = 10+1 Olly Allen 3 3 1* N = 7+1 Ryan Fisher 2 2* 2 1 2 M 2* = 11+2 Filip Sitera 3 0 2* 1* 0 0 = 6+2
WOLVERHAMPTON 40 Fredrik Lindgren 3 2 3 3 3 = 14 Morten Risager 1 0 1 X = 2 Niels-Kristian Iversen 1 6^ 2 2 2* = 13+1 David Howe 0 0 0 R = 0 Jesper B Monberg 2 1 2 2* = 7+1 Ludvig Lindgren 0 R F 1* = 1+1 Nicolai Klindt 1 1* T 0 1 = 3+1
