The early 1930s. At a motorcycle speedway track, Bill Summers, a brash and cocky motorbike rider recently arrived from Australia, beats the previous best, set by fellow rider Leonard '"Mitch"' Mitchell, and becomes the new favourite with audiences. During a race, when a rider falls, Bill throws himself to one side rather than hurt the other man. He soon gets back in the race and wins, to rapturous applause. Back in the changing rooms, Mitch is accused of trying to hurt the chances of the others by "boring" with his bike. Mitch persuades the others to "'christen'" Bill by throwing him in the communal bath, but he regrets it when he discovers that Bill was wearing Mitch's new suit. Later that evening at a club everyone fetes Bill and Mitch invites him on a trip.

Mitch and Bill drive to a cottage in the country, where Bill meets Jane, and makes a date to see her again. They start seeing each other and, after a moonlit ride and a kiss, Jane tells Bill that now they will have to get married. Bill is initially reticent, but he falls in love with Jane's innocence and simple outlook, and so agrees. Jane, however, is not the naïve, sheltered country girl that she presents herself to be. She is in league with Mitch to get Bill's winnings and make him lose the final race of the championship, allowing Mitch to win the purse instead. Bill soon spends all his money on Jane, buying expensive jewellery and an engagement ring. Jane is moved by his love for her and starts to have doubts about the plan.

In the track changing rooms, Mitch taunts Bill by telling everyone that he and Jane have duped him. Mitch shows him the engagement ring to prove it. The two get in to a fight and have to be pulled apart so that the race can start. They continue to fight during the race, trying to knock each other off their bikes. This leads to chaos during the race and a bike crashes, leaving burning petrol strewn on the track. The two ride across the flames and are both thrown off their bikes. Mitch lands in the flames and has to be rescued. Bill is blamed and booed by the audiences. He takes to drink and is banned by the track stewards for insubordinate behaviour. Jane goes to Bill, saying that she really does love him and is sorry for the trick that she and Mitch played on him. He refuses to believe her after he learns that Mitch has left her and taken all her jewels, angrily rebuffing her.

Bill continues to drink and, finding work hard to get, soon ends up appearing at a 'Wall of Death' attraction at a fair. The owner of the fair threatens to fire him for his frequent drunkenness, unless he is prepared to undertake a spectacular and very dangerous stunt. Bill at first refuses, but after learning that the speedway still won't take him back, he agrees. Huge crowds appear on the day to see Bill. He plans to ride round the wall at top speed and then drive over the edge and then land in a safety net. Jane also comes to see him and Shorty, Bill's faithful friend and mechanic, tries to get her to put a stop to the proceedings. She decides not to, as he clearly still needs to regain his self-respect. He performs the jump, but the bike goes right through the net and Bill is badly hurt. Jane runs to him and tells him how much she loves him. His eyes open slightly and he smiles. Shorty, with tears in his eyes, asks the large crowds to step back as the stretcher-bearers carry Bill away.