Oxford owner Allen Trump has warned that Cheetahs need at least around 300 more fans a week plus around £50,000 sponsorship to compete in the Premier League next season.

Trump picked up a few home truths about the Premier League from his old chum and former Oxford team manager Len Silver when they met up at Oxford recently.

The pair were able to sit down and discuss the costs of running a Premier League team at Oxford, hopefully next season.

The interesting thing to come out of the talks was that other Premier League clubs are keen to have Oxford upgraded in any new league structure.

However, Silver did add a word of caution as to running costs in the Premier League, and Trump admits that Oxford have some way to go to achieve the income to finance Premier League speedway at Oxford.

Trump said: "To get things into perspective, our attendances would have to increase by around 300 per week and the club would need to be sponsored to the tune of around £2,000 per home meeting or £55,000 per season."

Experienced promoter Ian Thomas has already warned of Elite League riders dropping into the Premier League next year expecting to be paid top rates.

Some Elite League riders are commanding between £175 and £200 a point this year, which is of course a non-starter in the lower league.

There's talk of the whole new speedway league structure being formulated for next season.