Gorseinon‘s Alfie Smith finished on the podium in his first British Sidecar Championship race, taking third at Brands Hatch on Saturday 17 October.
The 21-year-old and his driver Luke Williams also set the fastest lap of the race on the way.
Alfie is the passenger, the one hanging off the outfit and shifting his body weight across it through every corner.
The team says he had been on a sidecar just four times before the Brands Hatch weekend.
Starting third on the grid, the pair crossed the line 5.508 seconds behind the winning Christie outfit in race one of the Marin British Sidecar Championship, with Blackstock and Lawrence second.
Their best lap of 1:33.003, on lap eight of ten, was the quickest of the race at 94.18mph around the GP circuit, according to the provisional results.
Gorseinon passenger’s dad raced sidecars with Luke Williams’ father
Alfie has spent much of his motorsport career in motocross, and only moved into British sidecar racing late this season.
The partnership goes back a generation. In the 2000s, Alfie’s dad and Luke’s dad raced together as a sidecar team.
Luke, of Team Williams Sidecar Racing, is from Thirsk in North Yorkshire and has Welsh roots through his grandfather.
Brands Hatch pole ends in a last-lap breakdown on BSB’s final weekend
That Saturday fastest lap handed the pair pole position for Sunday’s race at the final round of the 2026 ZYN British Superbike Championship.
It ended in heartbreak when the outfit broke down on the last lap, in front of a TV audience on TNT Sports, HBO Max and Discovery+.
Alfie Smith targets the 2027 British Sidecar Championship title
Alfie said: “I was focused and looking forward to my British debut. The last few months of testing with Luke set us up for a good weekend. Luke has put a lot of effort into building the team and taking the time to mentor me.”
He added: “The transition has happened quite quickly and we are looking forward to competing in the whole series next year and aiming for the title, and the Worlds beyond that.”
The team says only a handful of Welsh passengers compete in sidecar racing, and that Alfie is set to be the only Welshman on the British grid next season.
He thanked the sponsors who “have put their faith in me and helped me achieve championship status in motocross”.
Luke said: “A brilliant way to end the year. To stand on the podium in Alf’s first British Championship race is an incredible achievement and a reward for all the hard work that’s gone in throughout the season.”
He added: “Alf passengered brilliantly all weekend, and this result gives us plenty of confidence. All eyes are now on next season.”
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