IF Ipswich Witches fans are looking for more fire in their team's belly, then today they can start believing, as speculation mounted that Scott Nicholls is returning to Foxhall.

Mike Bacon

IF Ipswich Witches fans are looking for more fire in their team's belly, then today they can start believing, as speculation mounted that Scott Nicholls is returning to Foxhall.

The Ipswich-born 31-year-old British Grand Prix star looks set to re-join the Suffolk side for the rest of the season, replacing Pole Jarek Hampel who, despite his decent form, has missed meetings too regularly for the Witches management's liking.

And although no-one from Foxhall could comment last night, if the passion Nicholls showed in the GP at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium on Saturday night is anything to go by, Witches fans will enjoy an all-action Nicholls back in Witches colours.

Nicholls was involved in an on-track fight with Russia's Emil Sayfutdinov at the weekend after the pair clashed in a dramatic heat that ended up with punches thrown.

“Quite honestly I don't know what his problem was,” Nicholls said last night.

“You can watch the race as often as you want, I wasn't even especially hard on him, I just held him off. He was frustrated at then wouldn't leave it alone.

“Obviously I'm not going to just stand by and let him keep going at me like that.”

The fight, watched by hundreds of thousands live on Sky TV and by more than 40,000 in the Millennium Stadium, saw both riders trade punches, before a member of Sayfutdinov's management team then barged past Nicholls, as the Ipswich man headed down the tunnel.

“That was just pathetic,” Nicholls added.

“To barge into me like and not have the front to face me summed it all up for me really.”

Nicholls left the Witches at the start of the 2005 season, joining Coventry in at �30,000 transfer that rocked Witches fans.

After successful seasons at Brandon, Nicholls decided to miss out on the British scene at the start of this season, before joining Coventry last month for a 28-day period.

That's now up, and with Coventry soon to welcome back Ollie Allen and Ben Barker, Nicholls looks like he's heading back to Foxhall.

And with more speculation Troy Batchelor is also coming into the Foxhall side, the promised changes from the management are certainly taking shape, with only Danny King and Tobi Kroner relatively safe, having found most favour with Witches fans this season.

Check out Scott Nicholl's bust-up on video