Bradley Smith admitted he was slightly frustrated by the early decision by race direction to abort the start of the British Grand Prix, denying him the opportunity to lead on home soil. The Briton was among the pack of riders to opt for a change of motorcycle on the parade lap under flag-to-flag rules but with so many riders in a crowded pit-lane, race direction threw the red flags.
Although Smith understood the reasoning behind the call, he admitted to The Checkered Flag that it was a disappointment that his quick thinking went without reward.
“I decided on the way round because it was so slippery. Under the umbrella it felt not too bad but when I rode into the first corner, it was raining a lot more than I originally thought. I actually went off track on the out lap because I was pushing to get back to the grid and I went straight on at Brooklands. I knew once I’d done the first two corners what I was going to do so I wanted to lead and at least start the restart from pole position.”
“Of course, personally, I’d have like it to have continued because it would only have been dangerous if people weren’t prepared and we were”, he explained. “At the end of the day, race direction are here to look after every rider’s well-being and with there being so much carnage and potentially starting a race in pit-lane in wet conditions, they made the right decision. It would’ve been nice to lead my home Grand Prix having made a good call.”
Given the conditions, Smith was pleased to have maintained his consistent run of points finishes in 2015 although he did have his sights set a little higher than seventh before the lights went out.
“The race was really difficult in terms of changing conditions with a lot more water towards the end. I would like to have gone for a podium. Everyone brought their A-game to the race and I just didn’t have that extra little step and Scott just had a little bit too much for me to keep that top six position but I’m happy to have crossed the line”.
