Motorcycle racing does nothing if not build resilience. In a sport that literally knocks you down physically, mentally and emotionally, to succeed you need that staunch refusal to quit when the odds are stacked against you. The best very rarely get there on talent alone.

Andrew Lee knows all about the hard knocks of professional motorcycle racing. The most successful rider in the history of the now defunct Stock 1000 category with three titles on two different brands (BMW and Kawasaki), Lee’s career hit yet another potential dead end when, having just sealed the last-ever MotoAmerica Stock 1000 title in 2025 for the OrangeCat BMW squad, he was overlooked for a promotion to partner Sean Dylan Kelly as the team made a full-time leap into the Quad Lock Superbike class for 2026.

“I’ve always wanted to be in Superbike,” Lee says, “but when the OrangeCat team told me I wouldn’t be on the bike this year, it was tough to take. I thought, maybe I’ll get a fill-in ride or two, and I was honestly just hoping for anything to keep me on the grid. 

“Then in February, the Real Steel Honda ride came up in the Superbike Cup. I know it’s not the same level of equipment as in Superbike, but it gave me that opportunity to be on the grid 20 times in a season with the best guys in the paddock. That makes you push hard to not just win the class but also take it to some of the Superbikes, and it’s been an incredible experience so far.”

Lee has decimated the competition this year in Superbike Cup collecting seven podiums across the first 10 races and only suffering one DNF in Race 1 at Laguna Seca. Lee is a full 75 points clear at the top of the class standings going into round six at Mid-Ohio, with a fourth national championship win now firmly in his sights. But that’s far from the Fresno, California native’s only goal.

“I think from the outside looking in, it might look a little different, but I feel there’s much more in the tank,” Lee says. “I don’t feel I’ve reached the capacity of what the bike is capable of or what I’m capable of. We’re riding at a good level and going pretty fast, but the team and I have some bigger expectations than what we’re doing now. We have Hayden (Gillim, Real Steel Honda teammate) as the team leader on a full-spec Superbike, and I’ve made no secret that’s where I want to be next year, so he’s a good carrot to chase and to help me get faster.”

You get the sense of a young man in a hurry when chatting to Lee but the situation is not quite as straightforward. 

Lee’s been a fixture in the AMA professional paddock for over a decade, having grafted his way into various teams and classes and, more times than not, delivered race and championship-winning rides on large capacity motorcycles. 

One could be forgiven for thinking the 27-year-old has a bitterness to his character that his cabinet full of national-level trophies has not resulted in a coveted Superbike ride, but the Covid years at the beginning of this decade, like they did for so many, gave Lee a different perspective on his situation.

“I would say the last five years I’ve changed a lot,” Lee says. “I’ve been riding since I was four and all I wanted was to be a professional racer, but then through Covid I was kind of extracted from the sport due to sponsorship running out. I work in corporate America now and that makes it hard to go racing sometimes but it also makes you appreciate the fact that I’m getting to race cool motorcycles, travel with some of my best friends, and live this life even more.

“I’m also under the HRC banner which for me is such a dream come true. When I was a kid, I was a huge Ricky Carmichael fan. My first bike was a Honda CRF50F, my parents had bikes like Honda XR250s, and I can remember all the Ride Red commercials that played on TV during supercross perfectly. To pull those red leathers on and have the big H in the middle of the zip is a bit of a pinch yourself moment. I’ve still got a long way to go in this sport but I’m incredibly thankful for being here at all and I’m going to give it everything while I still can.”