Oxfordshire GT racer Jamie Derbyshire came away from the recent FIA GT test days at Dijon in France in an optimistic mood after trading times at the sharp end of the grid.

The two-day test was the first time that Derbyshire and the rest of the Balfe Motorsport team had been on track with their 2006 rivals. A gearbox problem on the opening day initially left Derbyshire with only half a lap under his belt.

However, great work by the team meant that the problem was fixed early in the morning of day two and it allowed him to get to grips with the circuit and see where he stood against the rest of the grid.

On a drying track after early rain, the Spirit Group-backed driver was immediately up to speed against some of the cream of world GT racing. In his first stint behind the wheel he was trading lap sector times with the top three cars out on the track.

He said: "I'm positive about the season now that we've had our first test against the competition.

"The team did brilliantly to get the car fixed overnight as we knew that we needed the track time to get up to speed and work on the set-up. It felt good to be lapping at that pace straight away, trading times with the Maserati's and Aston Martin's was a great start. The team overcame the problems it had and we can definitely go into the first round at Silverstone feeling optimistic."

Once out of the car he also had to contend with facing a barrage of TV cameras and interviews for the new production company covering the FIA GT championship this season.

"It was certainly a busy day, both in and out of the car," he said. "We should have some major TV coverage over the course of the season. There are some top line drivers and teams racing in the GT1 category this year and it should provide the fans both at the track and at home with some first class battles as the year goes on," he added.

Derbyshire's season starts in earnest at the start of next month, with the opening round of the FIA GT championship taking place at his home venue of Silverstone on May 7, with the prestigious Tourist Trophy up for grabs to the overall winner of the three-hour race.