Max Clegg could be frozen out by Monarchs

But the young Englishman could be left hanging on the line after Monarchs team manager Alex Harkess revealed there have so far been no negotiations. “We have not discussed Max at all to be truthful,” he said.

Clegg could be frozen out of the Monarchs side, the first casualty of the reduced team building points limit [40] in the Championship division, with Harkess conceding they cannot fit everybody in.

He said: “It’s unlikely we would be able to include Max, Dan Bewley and our No.7, whoever that turns out to be, it’s very difficult to do that.”

Monarchs are desperate to sign Bewley for a second season, however Harkess now admits therno means certain to get him.

Bewley is a Belle Vue Aces asset but the Manchester club are in limbo right now with their pomoters’ licence revoked after accumulating a mountain of debt at their new National Speedway Stadium this season.

But while the Aces are still expected to come to the tapes in 2017, Harkess said: “If Belle Vue decide to include Dan in their senior team who race on Friday nights he would be unavailable to us.

“At the moment because of the situation with Belle Vue we are not allowed to speak to any of their riders so we can’t move on. We can’t solve the Belle Vue problem on our own, other people are required to help.

“Once we receive permission to speak to their riders, which could happen by the end of the month, we will contact Dan because we are very keen to do a deal with him.”

Harkess added that filling their No. 1 position is just as crucial and Australian star Sam Masters is expected to fill that role once again.

Monarchs also need to find a replacement for Ryan Fisher who retired from the sport this season. Danish rider Rene Bach, who has been released by Glasgow Tigers, could be in the frame. “We have a number of options open to us,” added Harkess. “And they will all be looked at.”