{{Short description|English motorcycle speedway rider (born 1956)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=July 2020}} {{Use British English|date=June 2012}} {{Infobox speedway rider | name = Chris Morton | image = Chris Morton.jpg | nationality = British (English) | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1956|7|22|df=y}} | birth_place = [[Davyhulme]], England | career1 = [[Ellesmere Port Gunners]] | years1 = 1973 | career2 = [[Belle Vue Aces]] | years2 = 1973–1990 | career3 = [[Sheffield Tigers]] | years3 = 1993 | indivhonour1 = [[Intercontinental Final|Intercontinental Champion]] | indivyear1 = 1980 | indivhonour2 = [[British Speedway Championship|British Champion]] | indivyear2 = 1983 | indivhonour3 = [[Northern Riders' Championship|Northern Riders Champion]] | indivyear3 = 1983, 1987, 1993 | indivhonour4 = [[British League Riders' Championship|British League Riders' Champion]] | indivyear4 = 1984 | indivhonour5 = [[British Speedway Under 21 Championship|British Under-21 Champion]] | indivyear5 = 1974 | indivhonour6 = [[Volkswagen]]/[[Daily Mirror]] Grand Prix | indivyear6 = 1978 | indivhonour7 = Ace of Aces Grasstrack Champion | indivyear7 = 1988 | indivhonour8 = Manpower Trophy | indivyear8 = 1980 | indivhonour9 = [[Daily Mirror]] Golden Hammer | indivyear9 = 1980 | teamhonour1 = [[British League Knockout Cup|British League KO Cup winner]] | teamyear1 = 1973, 1975 | teamhonour2 = [[Speedway World Team Cup|World Team Cup Winner]] | teamyear2 = 1980 | teamhonour3 = [[British League]] Champion | teamyear3 = 1982 | teamhonour4 = [[Speedway World Pairs Championship|World Pairs Champion]] | teamyear4 = 1984 | teamhonour5 = [[British League Pairs Championship|British League Pairs Champion]] | teamyear5 = 1984 | teamhonour6 = Northern Trophy | teamyear6 = 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978 | teamhonour7 = British League Cup Winner | teamyear7 = 1983 }}
'''Christopher John Morton''', [[Order of the British Empire|MBE]] (born 22 July 1956<ref>Oakes, P & Rising, P (1986). ''1986 Speedway Yearbook''. {{ISBN|0-948882-00-X}}</ref>) is a former [[motorcycle speedway]] rider from England.<ref>Lawson, K (2018) "Riders, Teams and Stadiums". {{ISBN|978-0-244-72538-9}}</ref> He earned 115 international caps for the [[England national speedway team]] and 7 caps for the Great Britain team, making him the third most capped England & British rider of all-time.<ref name=URI>{{cite web |url=https://britishspeedway.co.uk/docs/Ultimate_Index_1929-2022.pdf |title=ULTIMATE RIDER INDEX, 1929-2022 |website=British Speedway |access-date=23 December 2023}}</ref>
==Career== Born in [[Davyhulme]], [[Lancashire]], he rode bikes from a young age at the farm of [[Peter Collins (speedway rider)|Peter Collins]]' parents. Morton made his debut for [[Ellesmere Port Gunners]] (on loan from [[Belle Vue Aces]]) on 15 May 1973. He showed rapid improvement then following an injury to Aces Captain [[Chris Pusey (speedway rider)|Chris Pusey]] in June 1973 he was drafted into the Belle Vue team scoring 6 points on his debut in an away meeting at Cradley Heath. The following season he became [[British Speedway Under 21 Championship|British Under-21 Champion]] at just 17 years of age.
During the late 1970s, Morton was a guest resident international rider at the famous [[Rowley Park Speedway]] in [[Adelaide]], [[South Australia]] where he often rode against the likes of home town hero [[John Boulger]] and [[Mildura]]'s [[Phil Crump]].
He rode for the [[Great Britain speedway team|England]] team at test level and represented them in the [[Speedway World Team Cup|World Team Cup]], winning the competition in 1980.
Morton became [[British Speedway Championship|British Champion]] in 1983 and [[Speedway World Pairs Championship|World Pairs Champion]] with best friend [[Peter Collins (speedway rider)|Peter Collins]] in [[1984 Speedway World Pairs Championship|1984]].
He won the 1984 [[British League Riders' Championship]], held at [[Hyde Road (speedway)|Hyde Road]] on 20 October.<ref>{{cite news |title=Speedway |work=Sunday Sun (Newcastle) |date=28 October 1984 |access-date=4 June 2023 |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0001723/19841028/055/0055 | via = [[British Newspaper Archive]]|url-access=subscription }}</ref>
He rode for Belle Vue for 18 seasons, starting for the [[1973 British League season]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.speedwayresearcher.org.uk/specialfeaturesrideraverages.pdf |title=Rider averages 1929 to 2009 |website=Speedway Researcher |access-date=21 August 2023}}</ref> and ending after the [[1990 British League season]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://britishspeedway.co.uk/docs/Ultimate_Index_1929-2022.pdf |title=ULTIMATE RIDER INDEX, 1929-2022 |website=British Speedway |access-date=21 August 2023}}</ref> During the 18 seasons he regularly averaged around the 10 point mark, including an impressive 10.30 and 10.31 in 1983 and 1984 respectively.
==After retirement== He retired from riding in 1990, leaving a legacy of being one of the most significant riders ever to ride for Belle Vue. In 1991, he became the manager of [[Berwick Bandits]] in 1991.<ref>Morton C. (2005). ''Until The Can Ran Out''. NPI Media Group. {{ISBN|0-7524-3473-X}}</ref> He also played a major role in the introduction of speedway to [[Buxton Hitmen|Buxton]] in 1994.<ref>{{cite news |title=Buxton Speedway is under Orders |work=Manchester Evening News |date=13 July 1994 |access-date=27 February 2024|url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0004985/19940713/059/0059 | via = [[British Newspaper Archive]]|url-access=subscription }}</ref>
In 2005, he returned to Belle Vue as commercial manager and then in December 2006, he was part of a consortium who bought the Aces and currently holds the position of Operations Director, having previously also acted as team manager.<ref name="Frost">Frost, Richard (2006) "Morton in Takeover", ''[[Speedway Star]]'', 14 October 2006, p. 3</ref><ref>"[http://menmedia.co.uk/middletonguardian/sport/s/1202377_karlsson_out_to_tame_the_wolves Karlsson out to tame the Wolves]", ''[[Middleton Guardian]]'', 1 April 2010, retrieved 22 July 2012</ref>
He was awarded his [[Order of the British Empire|MBE]] for services to speedway in 1992. In 2024, he was part of a team that undertook a marathon charity cycling ride for the Speedway Riders Benevolent Fund but was taken ill and required an emergency hernia operation.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://cumbriacrack.com/2024/09/02/dramatic-conclusion-for-heroic-speedway-fundraising-ride/ |title=Dramatic conclusion for heroic speedway fundraising ride |website=Cumbria Crack |access-date=19 September 2024 }}</ref>
== Family == Brother [[Dave Morton (speedway rider)|Dave]] was also a speedway rider.
==World Final Appearances== ===Individual World Championship=== * [[1976 Individual Speedway World Championship|1976]] - {{Flagicon|POL}} [[Chorzów]], [[Silesian Stadium]] - 11th - 6pts * [[1980 Individual Speedway World Championship|1980]] - {{Flagicon|SWE}} [[Gothenburg]], [[Ullevi]] - 9th - 8pts * [[1981 Individual Speedway World Championship|1981]] - {{Flagicon|ENG}} [[London]], [[Wembley Stadium (1923)|Wembley Stadium]] - 11th - 5pts * [[1983 Individual Speedway World Championship|1983]] - {{Flagicon|FRG}} [[Norden, Lower Saxony|Norden]], [[Motodrom Halbemond]] - 10th - 7pts * [[1986 Individual Speedway World Championship|1986]] - {{Flagicon|POL}} Chorzów, Silesian Stadium - 9th - 8pts * [[1987 Individual Speedway World Championship|1987]] - {{Flagicon|NED}} [[Amsterdam]], [[Olympic Stadium (Amsterdam)|Olympic Stadium]] - 13th - 9pts * [[1988 Individual Speedway World Championship|1988]] - {{Flagicon|DEN}} [[Vojens]], [[Vojens Speedway Center|Speedway Center]] - 10th - 6pts<ref>Bamford, R. & Shailes, G. (2002). ''A History of the World Speedway Championship''. Stroud: Tempus Publishing. {{ISBN|0-7524-2402-5}}</ref>
===World Pairs Championship=== * [[1981 Speedway World Pairs Championship|1981]] - {{Flagicon|POL}} Chorzów, Silesian Stadium (with [[Dave Jessup]]) - 6th - 17pts (10) * [[1984 Speedway World Pairs Championship|1984]] - {{Flagicon|ITA}} [[Lonigo]], [[Santa Marina Stadium]] (with [[Peter Collins (speedway rider)|Peter Collins]]) - '''Winner''' - 27pts (14)
===World Team Cup=== * [[1980 Speedway World Team Cup|1980]] - {{Flagicon|POL}} [[Wrocław]], [[Olympic Stadium (Wrocław)|Olympic Stadium]] (with [[Michael Lee (speedway rider)|Michael Lee]] / [[Peter Collins (speedway rider)|Peter Collins]] / [[Dave Jessup]]) - '''Winner''' - 40pts (11) * [[1981 Speedway World Team Cup|1981]] - {{Flagicon|FRG}} [[Olching]], [[Olching Speedwaybahn]] (with [[Dave Jessup]] / [[Kenny Carter]] / [[John Davis (speedway rider)|John Davis]] / [[Gordon Kennett]]) - '''2nd''' - 29pts (11) * [[1983 Speedway World Team Cup|1983]] - {{Flagicon|DEN}} Vojens, Speedway Center (with [[Kenny Carter]] / [[Michael Lee (speedway rider)|Michael Lee]] / [[Dave Jessup]] / [[Peter Collins (speedway rider)|Peter Collins]]) - '''2nd''' - 29pts (7) * [[1984 Speedway World Team Cup|1984]] - {{Flagicon|POL}} [[Leszno]], [[Alfred Smoczyk Stadium]] (with [[Peter Collins (speedway rider)|Peter Collins]] / [[Simon Wigg]] / [[Phil Collins (speedway rider)|Phil Collins]] / [[Neil Collins (speedway rider)|Neil Collins]]) - '''2nd''' - 24pts (4) * [[1986 Speedway World Team Cup|1986]] - {{Flagicon|SWE}} [[Gothenburg]], [[Ullevi]], {{Flagicon|DEN}} Vojens, Speedway Center, {{Flagicon|ENG}} [[Bradford]], [[Odsal Stadium]] (with [[Simon Wigg]] / [[Kelvin Tatum]] / [[Jeremy Doncaster]] / [[Neil Evitts]] / [[Marvyn Cox]]) - '''3rd''' - 81pts (20) * [[1988 Speedway World Team Cup|1988]] - {{Flagicon|USA}} [[Long Beach, California|Long Beach]], [[Veterans Memorial Stadium (Long Beach)|Veterans Memorial Stadium]] (with [[Simon Wigg]] / [[Simon Cross]] / [[Kelvin Tatum]] / [[Gary Havelock]]) - 4th - 22pts (4)
==World Longtrack Championship==
'''Finalist'''
* 1980 - {{flagicon|FRG}} Scheeßel 5pts (14th) * 1982 - {{flagicon|DEN}} Esbjerg 4pts (14th) * 1985 - {{flagicon|DEN}} Esbjerg 0pts (20th) Reserve * 1987 - {{flagicon|FRG}} Muhldorf 2pts (17th) * '''1988 - {{flagicon|FRG}} Scheeßel 31pts (Third)''' * 1989 - {{flagicon|TCH}} Marianske Lazne 8pts (15th)
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morton, Chris}} [[Category:1956 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:British speedway riders]] [[Category:English motorcycle racers]] [[Category:British Speedway Championship winners]] [[Category:Speedway promoters]] [[Category:Members of the Order of the British Empire]] [[Category:People from Davyhulme]] [[Category:Sportspeople from Trafford (district)]] [[Category:Speedway World Pairs Champions]] [[Category:Belle Vue Aces riders]] [[Category:Sheffield Tigers riders]] [[Category:Ellesmere Port Gunners riders]] [[Category:20th-century English sportsmen]]