Smith close to F2 deal

The 22-year-old took part in last winter's post-season F2 test and was impressed with the series.

"Right now F2 is definitely the plan," Smith said. "I really like the overall package: the cars are all very close, they're a lot faster than F3 and the budget is very attractive.

"Andy Soucek is the perfect example of where you can go straight from F2, so that's another good asset of the championship."

Although Smith would be stepping up to F2 straight from Formula Renault - where he won last year's UK title - he is confident he would be a title contender based on his form in testing.

"It will also be a big jump for me, and I look forward to the challenge," he said.

"We are quite close to a deal now, and with my experience of the car I will definitely be aiming for the championship in my first year.

"The F2 is different to any other car I have driven, but I adapted very quickly. On the first morning I went with the recommended set-up and I ended sixth tenths of a second clear of the field.

In the next two sessions I played around with the settings, but by the end I went fourth fastest on old tyres and was on a very fast lap on new tyres until the car had a problem in the second sector. Overall it was very positive."