Bradley Smith Provides Example For Upcoming Young British Riders

Bradley Smith became the youngest ever British rider to take a top three finish in the World 125cc Championship in the weekend’s French Grand Prix, at the same time becoming the first British rider since 1989 to claim a podium finish in this category. The 16 year old Oxfordshire schoolboy has been groomed for stardom at the Red Bull MotoGP Academy, run by Dorna, and is now in his second year riding for the Repsol Honda team, but, he spent the formative years of his short career in the British 125GP Championship.

Riding in selected rounds of that series, Bradley impressed, particularly with a winning ride at Oulton Park in 2005, and that eased him forwards to work with the Spanish based Academy, and tuition from former Grand Prix rider Alberto Puig. Under that guidance, Bradley then raced in the 125cc Spanish Championship, missing out on that title by just a single point.

The opportunities for upcoming British riders to follow in the tracks of Bradley are wide-open, with Dorna UK, the commercial partners of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship, operating a scheme within the fabric of this year’s British 125GP series to help them progress their careers.

The Dorna Academy Cup is open to all riders aged between 14 and 16 years and it provides an end of season rewards for the rider judged to have the most promise for the future to attend a weekend in Spain with the MotoGP Academy.

“We are keen to promote the interests of young, upcoming talent and move them onto the world stage. This is an ongoing process, and we assess the performances of riders round by round, with a view to giving them every chance to capitalise on their skills. Bradley is an outstanding talent and is a shining example to all of the young riders in the Academy Cup of what can be achieved by hard work and dedication,” said Tony Partis, the managing director of Dorna UK.

Currently Luke Mossey leads the Dorna Academy Cup, by a single point from Robbie Stewart, with Alec Wright in close contention after five closely contested rounds.

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