After capturing the 2025 MotoAmerica Stock 1000 Championship, OrangeCat Racing is stepping up big for the 2026 MotoAmerica season.
The Chicago-based team will compete in MotoAmerica’s premier Superbike class with two riders signed to compete aboard BMW M 1000 RR machines as one of BMW Motorrad Motorsport’s Official Race Teams. Incumbent rider Jayson Uribe has been joined on the team by Sean Dylan Kelly.
“SDK,” as Kelly is best known, has already enjoyed a highly successful motorcycle roadracing career despite being only 23 years old. He captured the MotoAmerica Supersport Championship in 2021 after finishing as runner-up in 2020. Kelly then raced in the FIM Moto2 World Championship for two seasons before returning to the MotoAmerica paddock where the Floridian recorded his first MotoAmerica Superbike race victory in 2024 aboard a BMW M 1000 RR.
“The Superbike program OrangeCat Racing developed with BMW Motorrad for next year is massive, and I’m grateful to be part of it,” Kelly said. “I can’t wait to jump back on the BMW M 1000 RR, a bike I felt really good with, and got a win with, in my rookie season. I’m
working hard to make the most out of the opportunity, and I want to say thank you to OrangeCat Racing and BMW Motorrad for believing in me.”
Uribe, who is 26 years old, returns to OrangeCat Racing for a third season after finishing third aboard his BMW M 1000 RR in the 2025 Stock 1000 Championship with eight podium finishes on the season. The northern Californian raced overseas for several years at an early age before joining OrangeCat Racing in 2024, where he finished as runner-up on a BMW M 1000 RR in the 2024 Stock 1000 Championship.
“From a small fish in Stock 1000 to a Superbike rider on a BMW Motorrad Motorsport Official Race Team, I’m incredibly lucky and thankful to have been with OrangeCat Racing for every step of the journey,” commented Uribe. “I’m confident that, with BMW’s help and support in 2026, we’ll be able to build on the already promising top-five Superbike finish we had at New Jersey in the final round of the 2025 MotoAmerica season. With SDK as my teammate and the amazing OrangeCat Racing crew, I’m genuinely excited to see what we can achieve together in the premier class.”
Kevin Philips, head of BMW Motorrad, Americas, said, “This partnership brings together two organizations united by a passion for performance and racing excellence. OrangeCat Racing, from the riders, to the engineers, to the mechanics, have been absolutely first-class ambassadors for our brand and for the greater motorcycle community. We are excited about our future as we continue showcasing the winning capabilities of the BMW M 1000 RR in North America’s premier Superbike championship.”
OrangeCat Racing and BMW Motorrad began competing with the BMW M 1000 RR in MotoAmerica’s Stock 1000 class in 2023, and they achieved immediate success. In three seasons, OrangeCat Racing brought home 10 wins and 33 podiums, including a runner-up Championship result with rider Kaleb De Keyrel in 2023, another runner-up result in the 2024 Stock 1000 Championship with Jayson Uribe, and both a Stock 1000 Championship with Andrew Lee and a third-place finish with Uribe this past season.
“BMW has been key to our success over the years, and we’re excited about what we can achieve with their support,” said Jeff Connors, team principal for OrangeCat Racing. “The passion and work ethic BMW Motorrad Motorsport brings to the table day-in and day-out are infectious. We feel more than up to the challenge of Superbike with BMW’s partnership.”
Andrew Sieja, founding principal of OrangeCat Racing added, “I’m super-proud of our whole team for continuing to embrace any challenge thrown our way, and BMW has been an outstanding partner for all of us. We have a lot in common, from love of the sport, to a sense of adventure and trying new things, to striving for our best in anything we take on.”
The 2026 MotoAmerica Superbike season will feature 20 Superbike races at nine rounds across the U.S.
To check out the 2026 MotoAmerica calendar and purchase race weekend tickets, CLICK HERE
For information on how to watch the MotoAmerica series, including how to subscribe to MotoAmerica Live+, our Live Streaming and Video On Demand service, CLICK HERE
To find out more about OrangeCat Racing, visit orangecatracing.com or check out the team’s Instagram feed at @orangecatracing
