NANTWICH-BASED driver Rob Smith got his MINI Challenge UK season moving in the right direction over the weekend.

Smith grabbed two fifth-place finishes as the series rolled into Rockingham, and fifth is now where he stands in the overall driver standings.

“I’m actually pretty happy with two top fives at a circuit that’s always been a bit of a bogey track for me,” he said.

“Our pace was good this weekend, my racecraft was sharp and I pulled off three good late braking moves into Deene, from a long way back, in race one which I was pleased with.

“In the second race, I got up to second which was great but then we obviously had the red flag.

“We do need some more development time with the car so hopefully we can get a day somewhere just to iron a few things out.

“This weekend has still been a really big improvement though. We’re moving in the right direction now.”

The series now takes a four-week break, with the next round coming at Snetterton in Norfolk on May 26-27.