NEIL Middleditch is calling for Grand Prix chiefs to pitch Chris Holder straight into the World Championship next year.

Pirates' team manager made his plea after 20-year-old Holder had equalled two-times world champion Jason Crump's track record at Eastbourne.

The lightning Australian was at his scintillating best as he scorched to a faultless 14 paid 15 point maximum during Poole Castle Cover's steamrollering win over the Eagles.

It was the Dorset club's 11th straight league triumph and propelled them three points clear at the top of the table.

Despite a superb all-round team performance by Pirates, it was Holder's immaculate individual display that everyone in a 1,200 crowd was talking about as they left Arlington on Saturday.

Holder impressively equalled Crump's record of 54.8 seconds for four times round the 275-metres circuit when he won heat one ahead of current GP rider Scott Nicholls.

Crump had lowered six-times world champion Tony Rickardsson's near five-year record of 55.1 to 54.9 on April 19, before trimming it by 0.1 in June.

Rickardsson is arguably the best rider of all time, while Crump is up there with the very best.

So Holder's achievement - on only his third appearance at Eastbourne and in just his 12th ride round the technically testing tricky Arlington track - is phenomenal.

It prompted Middleditch, Great Britain's former boss, to say: "If the GP organisers want to get the best riders in the world, at the moment Chris is one of the best riders in the world.

"He fully deserves a place in the GP because, at 20 years old, we haven't seen the best of Chris Holder yet."

Holder, who majestically reeled off four heat wins and a second behind team-mate Magnus Zetterstrom at Eastbourne, bowed out of the GP qualifiers at the semi-final stage following two engine failures and an exclusion in a nightmare meeting in Lonigo.

That rules him out of one of the three qualifying places up for grabs.

But there are still four permanent seeded places available, and one wild card in each round of next year's series.

Talking about how seeded riders are selected, Middleditch said: "I don't know what the organisers are looking at.

"It's hard. The rules are the rules. The qualifiers have to go in but if you want to see some of the most exciting riders, Chris is one of them.

"I know certain riders have to have a wild card place but he is one of the best 20 year olds in the world."

Politics, especially TV politics, have a big say in which riders from which countries are awarded seeded and wild card places.

So, with the Aussies well represented by Crump and Leigh Adams at the moment, Holder's case isn't clear cut, even if he wins the World Under-21 title next month.

Middleditch said: "You have Jason and Leigh in there and they will be in there next year.

"You can't saturate it with Aussies but Jason and Leigh in three years time might not be there and in three years time Chris will be at his best.

"At the least, he certainly deserves some wild cards next year to show what he can do.

"If the GP organisers want to give the fans the best riders in the world, he has to be in as many rounds as possible.

"The same can apply to Emil Sajfutdinov. They are two of best young riders in the sport.

"Let's put them up against the masters. The Nicki's (current world champion Nicki Pedersen), Jason's and Leigh's," added Middleditch.