Lee Johnston (born March 10 1989) is a motorcycle racer from Maguiresbridge,Katrina Brennan, 'The man behind the helmet'. Fermanagh Herald, 10 February 2021. Retrieved 12 May 2025 County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland who currently competes in the British Supersport Championship for Sencat by Swan Racing. He is a successful road racer, having won the North West 200 five times and 2019 Isle of Man TT in the Supersport class.

Career

Early career Johnston first began competing in motorcycle racing as a teenager, winning national championships on Minimoto bikes. He then moved British Superstock, originally in the National Superstock 1000 class and then National Superstock 600, winning the latter category in 2008.

Johnston graduated to the main British Supersport Championship in 2009, and finished 12th overall in the standings with a best result of fifth. For the 2010 season, he contested all but one round of the championship and finished in 13th place. In 2011, he signed a deal with East Coast Construction team, and finished the season in 16th place. Following the 2011 season, Johnston moved primarily to road racing.

Road racing Johnston first competed in road racing in 2011, when East Coast Construction invited him to North West 200, Isle of Man TT and Ulster Grand Prix, taking a podium in the latter. He competed in the three races for the following eight years, switching to a Honda bike in 2017, on which he finished second at the 2017 North West 200. The following year, he moved back to Yamaha, with East Coast Construction now known as Ashcourt Racing, and won the North West 200. In 2019, he achieved his first victory at the Isle of Man TT in the Supersport race.

Major road races were cancelled in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

During practice for the 2023 North West 200, Johnston crashed heavily and sustained serious injuries, including a broken femur, shoulder and ribs, along with a collapsed lung. In 2025, BBC released a film titled Ride or Die which partially focused on Johnston's accident and recovery.

Johnston attempted to return to road racing in 2024, but broke his leg during testing in Spain. This left him unable to compete in both the North West 200 and the Isle of Man TT. However, he was able to recover in time for the Manx Grand Prix in August, competing in the Lightweight class, and finished in second place.

Johnston chose not to return to the North West 200 and Isle of Man TT in 2025, instead focusing on his British Supersport campaign, although he did participate in BBC Northern Ireland's coverage of both events.

Return to British Supersport Championship Johnston returned to the British Supersport Championship in 2020. Towards the end of the season, he began to struggle with ankylosing spondylitis, a spinal condition that causes inflammation.

In 2023, Johnston was leading the championship standings when he suffered severe injuries during the North West 200, which meant he was unable to compete in the remainder of the season. He finished 17th in the standings with two wins.

In September 2024, Johnston returned to the series following recovery from his 2023 injuries, competing in the final three rounds of the championship. In the same month, he announced that Ashcourt Racing would withdraw from competition following the end of the season. He finished the year in 15th place in the standings.

Johnston remained in the series for 2025, now competing for Sencat by Swan Racing.

Career statistics

Partial British Supersport Championship results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap) YearBike123456789101112PosPts2009YamahaBRH1OUL1DONTHRSNEKNOMALBRH2CADCROSILOUL212th522010KawasakiBRH1THROUL1CAD1MALKNO13th38TriumphSNEBRH2CAD2CROSILOUL22011HondaBRH11BRH12OUL11OUL12CRO1CRO2THR1THR2KNO1KNO2SNE1SNE2OUL21OUL22BRH21BRH22CAD1CAD216th80TriumphDON1DON2SIL1SIL2BRH31BRH32BRH332022Yamaha SIL1 SIL2 OUL11 OUL12 DON11 DON12 KNO1 KNO2 BRH11 BRH12 THR1 THR2CAD1CAD2 SNE1 SNE2 OUL21 OUL22 DON21 DON22 BRH21 BRH224th2572023Yamaha SIL1 SIL2 OUL11 OUL12DON11DON12KNO1KNO2SNE1SNE2BRH11BRH12THR1THR2CAD1CAD2OUL21OUL22DON21DON22BRH21BRH2217th642024TriumphNAV1NAV2OUL11OUL12DON11DON12KNO1KNO2SNE1SNE2BRH11BRH12THR1THR2CAD1CAD2 OUL21 OUL22 DON21 DON22 BRH21 BRH2215th482025Triumph OUL11 OUL12 DON11 DON12 SNE1 SNE2 KNO1 KNO2 BRH11 BRH12 THR1 THR2 CAD1 CAD2 DON21 DON22 ASS1 ASS2 OUL21 OUL22 BRH21 BRH2210th*33* Season still in progress

European Superstock 600 Races by year (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position, races in italics indicate fastest lap) Year Bike 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Pos Pts 2008 Honda VAL ASS MNZ NÜR MIS BRN BRA DON MAG POR 24th 8

British Supersport Championship (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Bike 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Pos Pts Honda BHI 5 OULRet DON9 THR9 SNEDNS KNO5 MALRet BHGPRet CADRet CRO11 SILRet OUL5 12th 52 2010 Kawasaki/Triumph BHI14 THR9 OULRet CAD14 MAL KNO16 SNE12 BHGPRet CADRet CRO7 SIL9 OUL9 13th 38 Year Bike 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 Pos Pts 2023 Yamaha SLV SLV OPK OPK DPK DPK KNH KNH STN STN BRH BRH TXN TXN CPK CPK OPK OPK DPK DPK BRH BRH 17th 64

References