Bradley Smith thriving on pressure

British rider Bradley Smith says he’s thriving on the pressure to perform for the high profile Aspar Aprilia in 2009.

The 18-year-old continued his sensational season with a brilliant ride under pressure to win Sunday’s Italian 125GP in Mugello.

Coming hot on the heels of his debut win in Jerez last month, Smith is the first British rider for 37 years to lead the world 125GP world championship.

He’s now 3.5 points clear of Aspar Aprilia team-mate Julian Simon going into round six of the series in Catalunya next weekend.

Smith has found his winning form despite being under intense pressure to deliver in 2009 having been signed by the successful Spanish-based Aspar Aprilia squad for his fourth world championship campaign.

“I think it is actually easier to be in a team like that just because everybody wants to win, “the Oxfordshire rider told MCN.

“And everybody expects to be fighting for the podium. They have been in that position many times before and they expect to be at the front and they all work as hard as they can to be at the front. When we are at the front there is not too much excitement, they keep level headed. They are happy to be on top but they keep concentrating and doing exactly the same. And they don’t settle for just being at the top. They want to be at the top by half-a-second. They want to have that extra step and they believe they are putting that effort in for the riders and they expects us to be another step above everybody else.”