Gloucestershire-based Smiths Racing BMW got their 2016 MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship season started at Silverstone over the weekend and although it proved to be a tough start for new team members Jakub Smrz and Howie Mainwaring Smart, it was down to Czech Republic rider Smrz to bag some all-important points at the opening round.
Practice and qualifying saw tricky conditions at the Northamptonshire track and after qualifying, Smrz lined up in 14th place on the grid for the opening 14-lap race with Aylesford’s Mainwaring Smart in 22nd and on the 
eighth row of the grid.
Riding the Smiths Racing BMW S1000R, the duo found themselves battling it out for the positions at the lower end of the leaderboard and although it was a relatively uneventful race for the pair, Smrz was rewarded with 15th place and a hard earned championship point with Mainwaring Smart finishing just outside in 18th for the former double British Supersport champions and TT winners.
Starting the second race from the sixth and seventh rows respectively, the 14 lap race followed a similar pattern with both Jakub and Howie running inside the top twenty from the outset. It was again Smrz who had the slightly stronger pace and he moved into 15th and into the points once more by mid-race distance. Locked in a battle for 12th place he eventually crossed the line in 15th place with Mainwaring Smart improving to 17th.
Jakub Smrz: “It’s been quite a tough weekend with the mixed weather conditions not allowing us to make improvements to the bike as we would have liked. We made changes all the time and the changes always made the bike better so we’re definitely moving in the right direction; we just need some good, dry track time to get to the place where we want to be. I scored points in both races, but, of course, 15th isn’t where I should be finishing. But all the changes we made were positive and we have a platform to build on. I really like the team and the Smiths BMW so am confident we’ll be stronger next time out.”
Howie Mainwaring: “We’ve made steady progress all weekend and have been making changes to the chassis throughout, trying a lot of things we didn’t get to try during testing. The Smiths BMW is very different to the bike I’ve ridden for the last two years and it’s an unbelievable package but we just 
need to find the sweet spot and get it to work for me and my riding style. I’m obviously not happy at all with the results, but it’s a new bike and a new team and the changes we’ve made have all been positive so we’re moving in the right direction.”
Rebecca Smith, Team Manager: “We’re naturally disappointed with the results this weekend and they don’t reflect the effort everybody’s been putting in as the whole team have been working incredibly hard. The issues we’ve encountered have primarily been with set-up as everything else has been perfect so we’ve been left scratching our heads a bit as they’re problems we haven’t encountered before. We know the areas we need to improve though, so are looking forward to going testing at Oulton Park and resolving the problems we’ve had this weekend.”
MCE British Superbike Championship – Race One (14 laps)
1 Michael Laverty (BMW)
2 Shane Byrne (Ducati)
3 Christian Iddon (BMW)
4 Luke Mossey (Kawasaki)
5 Dan Linfoot (Honda)
6 Jason O’Halloran (Honda)
15 Jakub Smrz (Smiths Racing BMW)
18 Howie Mainwaring (Smiths Racing BMW)
MCE British Superbike Championship – Race Two (14 laps)
1 Peter Hickman (Kawasaki)
2 Shane Byrne (Ducati)
3 Christian Iddon (BMW)
4 Jason O’Halloran (Honda)
5 Leon Haslam (Kawasaki)
6 Michael Laverty (BMW)
15 Jakub Smrz (Smiths Racing BMW)
17 Howie Mainwaring (Smiths Racing BMW)
Championship Standings (after round one)
1 Byrne 40pts
2 Laverty 35
3 Iddon 32
4 Hickman 25
5 O’Halloran 23
6 Mossey 19
17 Smrz 2
The next round of the 2016 MCE British Superbike Championship takes place at Oulton Park in Cheshire over the May bank holiday weekend of April 30/May 2. For more information, please visit www.britishsuperbike.com and www.smithsracing.co.uk.
Pictures (courtesy of Jon Jessop Photography) Smrz (96) and Mainwaring Smart (43)
ENDS
Note to Editors:
Smiths (Gloucester) Limited was started in 1982 by Alan Smith. Smiths is a family run business and provides services in construction, waste management and recycling, demolition, transport, skip hire, laser levelling, asbestos removal and plant hire. It has grown from a small, owner-operated construction firm to one of the region’s largest and most respected construction services and waste management companies.
Alan Smith developed his love of bikes and racing in the 1980s when he competed in local and national amateur motocross events, his highest achievement being several top three positions in the national four-stroke and superclass categories.
The Smiths Racing Team continues the family ethos with daughter Rebecca adopting the mantle of Team Manager and wife Anne, son Paul and daughters Helen and Lisa often seen supporting the team on race days.
