The title race may be over, but Sunday's Australian MotoGP still produced plenty of thrills and spills as nine riders either crashed or failed to finish - including world champion Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team).
Cal Crutchlow (Ducati) suffered the misfortune of an accident on the last lap when he was second and Smith's Monster Yamaha Tech 3 team-mate Pol Espargaro also came off late on.
Englishman Smith subsequently finished third and secured a first podium at the end of his second season since making the step up from Moto2.
Not that the 23-year-old was aware of his achievement when he reached the chequered flag behind only race winner Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo, which made it an all-Yamaha podium.
"I saw my team-mate and Cal both go down at turn four in front of me. I didn't even know I was third on the last lap," said Smith.
"I crossed the line and it was just Jorge and Rossi ahead of me so I checked the big screen.
"I then started making some weird noises in my helmet, but it’s pretty special to have my first podium.
"A huge thank you to the team having faith in me enough to keep me this year and the next year."
Rossi's second race win of 2014 came on his 250th appearance in the premier class.
"It's a fantastic day," beamed the Italian.
"I came back to victory here almost 10 years after my last win, a great achievement at one of the most beautiful tracks of the year."