Smith finished on the podium for the second time in three races.

A brilliant late burst from Bradley Smith saw the Oxfordshire rider finish in second place in the 125cc Catalunya Grand Prix in Barcelona on Sunday.

The race was won by Marc Marquez, with the battle for the other podium places fought out between Smith, Nico Terol and Pol Espargaro.

"That was a second place that was hard earned, big time," said Smith.

"This was almost a victory and makes up so much for all the disappointments earlier in the year."

He added: "I just pushed so hard throughout the 22 laps and it finally paid off. Nobody was going to catch Marc at the front."

Smith's chances of a podium finish looked to be over when he dropped from second to fourth at the first corner on the final lap.

But the 19-year-old produced a sensational late burst, first to pass Aspar Aprilia team-mate Terol, and then to blast past Espargargo on the back straight, before defending superbly over the final few corners to claim his second podium finish in the last three races.

Smith now stands fourth in the 2010 125cc World Championship, behind Terol, Espargaro, and Marquez.

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