Oxfordshire's Bradley Smith is determined to build on his best result when the MotoGP World Championship returns to Argentina for the first time in 15 years tomorrow.

Riding for the Monster Yamaha Tech3 team, the 23-year-old, from Forest Hill, near Oxford, finished fifth behind race winner Marc Marquez in the Grand Prix of the Americas in Austin, Texas, two weeks ago.

Now he is looking to keep up his good form.

“After my best ever result, and finishing as the leading Yamaha in Texas, I am determined to carry on this positive display,” he said.

“The Yamaha feels great and I am pleased with my performance over race distance, so for sure with a big team effort we will be able to get a competitive result in Argentina this weekend.”

After the sport’s long absence from the South American country, Smith can’t wait to race at the fast and meandering Circuito Termas de Rio Hondo, located in the province of Santiago del Estero. He added: “For sure it will be very exciting for all of us to return to Argentina after so many years.

“The fans there have so much passion and I am truly looking forward to the race on this brand new circuit of Termas de Rio Hondo.

“All the facilities are still partly under construction, so it’s a big step into the unknown.”