Charlie Cotton leaning his lime-green BMX race bike hard through a berm in his aqua Sorted Racegear kit

UK BMX racer · 20″ & Cruiser · Sorted Racegear

CharlieCotton

Born to shred.

From balance-bike beginnings to the start gate at the UCI BMX World Championships. This is his story so far.

Read his story Instagram TikTok

“ His motto

Train insaneor remain the same.

Charlie Cotton

00 His story

Some kids ride bikes. Charlie races them.

Charlie Cotton is a BMX racer from the UK who lines up in two classes, 20-inch and Cruiser, and has spent his childhood chasing the next gate drop. His is a proper grassroots story: weekends at the track, a family who are there for every lap, and a steady climb that started on a little balance bike and led all the way to the start hill at the UCI BMX World Championships in Brisbane, Australia.

Along the way he has won National Series rounds, finished 4th on the 20-inch and 5th on the Cruiser at the British Championships, ridden for a team, qualified for the Worlds and picked up British and National rankings in both classes. He's built a following of thousands of BMX fans who tune in for race days, training and the occasional crash. Here's how it happened, from the beginning.

  • Discipline BMX racing
  • Classes 20″ & Cruiser
  • Team Sorted Racegear
  • Country 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
  • Motto Train insane or remain the same
Charlie in his aqua and white full-face helmet and goggles, gripping the bars
TaglineBorn to shred

The early days

It started on a balance bike

Like plenty of BMX racers, Charlie's story begins on a balance bike: no pedals, no gears, just two wheels and a lot of determination. Balance first, speed later. Those early wobbly laps were the first step on a road that would eventually cross the world.

Grassroots

Gates, clubs & a family behind him

From there it was club racing: practice sessions, first race meets and that unmistakable slam of the gate dropping. His first recorded results come from autumn 2022, when he won four rounds of a novice winter series. BMX is a family sport, and Charlie's family are part of every race day, trackside, in the pits and behind the camera filming the laps that end up on his channels.

He's the first to say thank you for it. The BMX mums and dads (and, in Charlie's case, his BMX grandad too) who make it all possible get their own shout-outs in his posts.

“These boys don’t stay little for long, especially in BMX.”From a post on @charliecottonbmx
Charlie rolling off the top of a start hill ahead of other riders
Charlie on his bike in the pits in race kit, visor up

Levelling up

Two wheel sizes. Twice the racing.

As he grew, so did the challenge. Charlie now races in two classes: the classic 20-inch and Cruiser, the bigger-wheeled bikes. That means double the motos on race day and two sets of rankings to chase.

A lot of the work happens away from race weekends: gate starts, manuals, pump-track sessions and laps of the British Cycling indoor BMX track, where the jumps are big and there's nowhere to hide.

Charlie airborne over a jump on an indoor BMX track, crowd in the stands behindIndoor sessions

i New to BMX racing?

Under a minute. Eight riders. One gate.

01

The gate

Up to eight riders line up on a start hill. The gate drops and it's a flat-out sprint for the first corner.

02

Motos

Race days run as qualifying heats called motos, then knockout rounds all the way to the final.

03

The track

Jumps, rhythm sections and banked berms. A lap usually takes less than a minute.

04

20″ vs Cruiser

Standard BMX race bikes run 20-inch wheels. Cruisers have bigger wheels. Charlie races both.

Charlie racing shoulder to shoulder with a rival through a berm

Chapter 04

A first National Series win

6 April 2025, round 2 of the British Cycling National Series in Manchester: Charlie crossed the line first in the Cruiser final, beating a field of 20 for his first National Series round win. It opened a breakout year on the big wheels. Two more round wins followed in July (rounds 9 and 10 in Birmingham), then 3rd overall in the series and 3rd at the British Championships.

Team life

Racing for Sorted

Next came a big step: his first season racing for a team. Charlie pulled on the aqua-and-black kit of Sorted Racegear and, in his words, “loved every minute”.

The season finished with a Championship Day to remember. Sorted won best team and moved back up to Elite. Then came the team day: laughs, awards and, as Charlie put it, “pizza demolished”.

“This is BMX. This is family.” Charlie, on Championship Day
The back of Charlie's aqua Sorted jersey with COTTON across the shouldersSorted Racegear

★ The team

Team Sorted

Aqua and black, fists up on the start hill. One team, one crew, with the silverware front and centre.

Team Sorted
Summer 2026 · Australia

Brisbane. The Worlds.

Then came the big one. Having qualified for the Worlds, Charlie travelled to Brisbane, Australia, to race at the UCI BMX World Championships, lining up against riders from all over the planet.

Around the racing he rode some of Queensland's best tracks, from the big Brisbane SX stadium to night racing under the lights at Logan. His verdict on the whole trip was in his own caption: “Australia, we loved you.”

  • Brisbane SX
  • Bayside
  • Logan · night racing
  • Pine Rivers
BMX riders racing under floodlights at night
Charlie airborne on plate 24 in front of the crowd and the Manchester BMX tower at the 2026 British Championships Manchester · 30 Aug 2026
Headline moment · 30 Aug 2026 · Manchester

British Championships

The biggest race of the British season, one winner-takes-all day in Manchester. Charlie made the 20-inch final and finished 4th out of 62 riders, his best 20-inch result at the British Championships so far. He added 5th of 27 on the Cruiser.

The race reel from Manchester, crash and all, went on to pass 20K views on Instagram.

4th20-inch finalof 62
5thCruiserof 27
#4British ranking20-inch · 2026
See it in the results →

Race-day frames · British Championships 2026 · tap to enlarge

Airborne in front of the crowd and the Manchester BMX tower at the 2026 British Championships Rolling up to the gate under the start-area gazebo Plate 24 in the air over the rhythm section Shoulder to shoulder in a British Champs moto

07 The season in numbers

That's a wrap

When the latest British BMX season wrapped, Charlie had rankings in both classes at every level, from club to British. Here's the final scoreboard, as he shared it.

#4
British ranking
20-inch · 4th at British Champs
#5
British ranking
Cruiser · 5th at British Champs
#8
National ranking
Cruiser
#19
National ranking
20-inch
#2
Regional ranking
20-inch
#2
Regional ranking
Cruiser
#2
Club championships
20-inch
WORLDS
Qualifier
UCI BMX Worlds · Brisbane

Every race. Every crash. Every comeback.

In Charlie's words · end-of-season post

Latest silverware · September 2026

Three trophies. One season.

The 2026 regional season ended with an armful of glass. Second in the championship race on 13 September, and second overall in the season-long series on both bikes. Three trophies, all with “2nd” on them, all earned one gate at a time.

Charlie in his 2026 Troy Lee Designs and Sorted race jersey, holding three glass trophies each marked 2nd 2026 · Triple 2nd

R Race results

Every gate, on record

Every recorded result since his first races in 2022, season by season. Filter by bike, see the podiums, and follow the climb from novice winter series to the British Championships.

Series standings

Sources: Roots & Rain rider results · Sqorz series standings (British Cycling National Series, British Championships, regional series). Age categories are hidden.

⌖ Tracks ridden

Every track, every gate

From windy club nights to the Worlds in Brisbane, these are the BMX tracks Charlie has raced on. The UK list comes straight from his results, and the Australian tracks are from the 2026 Worlds trip.

Venues from Roots & Rain results (race days = days with a recorded result) · map positions © OpenStreetMap contributors · outlines: Natural Earth

✦ Off-season

When the BMX season ends, we hit the MTBs, bike parks, skate parks, the lot.

New Pump track guides Surface, layout and who each track suits, for every pump track Charlie has ridden

⚙ The bikes

2026 Season Bikes

Charlie races two bikes, a 20-inch and a Cruiser. Pick one, then hover or tap the dots to see what it's built from.

Charlie high in the air over a jump against a blue sky

08 The mindset

Persistenceis key

It's the title of his most-watched TikTok, and it could just as easily be the title of this whole story. Every gate, every crash, every comeback.

▶ On the track

Six seconds at a time

“Train insane or remain the same.” Charlie

Race dayElbows out in the pack
Wheelie lapsBalance, all the way down the straight
British Champs 2026Manchester · 4th (20″) & 5th (Cruiser)
Indoor rhythmWinter training, under the roof
Under the lightsNight laps in Australia
Start hillDropping in off the ramp
Manual drillsFront wheel up, eyes forward
Night motoRacing the locals in Australia
Pump trackNo pedalling allowed

09 Milestones

The timeline

The early days

Balance-bike beginnings

Two wheels, no pedals, and the start of everything.

Autumn 2022

First recorded races

Club racing begins, and he wins four rounds of a novice winter series.

2023

Regional racing & first British Champs

Regional series podiums and his first start at the British BMX Championships.

2024

National Series debut

A first full season on the British Cycling National Series, plus rounds of the British 4X Series.

2025

First National Series win

Cruiser win at National Series round 2 in Manchester (6 April), then rounds 9 and 10. 3rd overall in the series and 3rd at the British Championships.

2026

First season with a team

Racing in Sorted Racegear colours, and loving every minute.

Summer 2026

UCI BMX Worlds, Brisbane

Worlds qualifier. Raced in Australia and rode Brisbane SX, Bayside, Logan and Pine Rivers.

30 Aug 2026

British Championships: 4th & 5th

4th of 62 on the 20-inch and 5th of 27 on the Cruiser in Manchester. The race reel, crash and all, passes 20K views on Instagram.

Sept 2026

Season wrap

British #4 (20″) and #5 (Cruiser). Sorted win best team and head back up to Elite.

Sept 2026

7,000 on Instagram & a new TikTok

Instagram passes 7K followers (“still over the moon”) and his TikTok channel launches.

Next

This is only the start

Another season, more gates, bigger goals.

10 What drives him

Passions & obsessions

Charlie leading riders down a start hill01

Gate starts

The first few pedal strokes decide a lot of races. He puts in the work on them.

Charlie in the air over an indoor BMX jump02

Mid-race air

Jumps, doubles and rhythm sections at full race pace. The bigger the better.

Charlie lifting the front wheel of his lime-green race bike03

Manuals & pump tracks

Keeping the front wheel up and making speed without pedalling.

Charlie landing a jump on the indoor track04

Indoor sessions

Laps of the British Cycling indoor track, whatever the weather outside.

Charlie airborne past the crowd at an outdoor race05

Race days

British Champs, Nationals, regionals and club racing, gate to finish line.

06

Team & family

His Sorted teammates, the BMX community, and the family who make every race day happen. “This is what it’s all about.”

11 On camera

The creator side

Off the track, Charlie shares the whole journey: full races from gate to finish, training clips, tips for riders new to the sport, and behind-the-scenes race days with the team. His verified Instagram is where it all started, and his TikTok launched in September 2026.

Instagram ✓@charliecottonbmx 7K+followers TikTok@charlie_cotton_bmx_racer NEWsince Sept 2026
Race daysFull laps, gate to finish, and the chaos in between.
Training & tipsManuals, gates and rollers, explained rider to rider.
Gear & techLike his iPhone vs Meta glasses footage comparison.
Team & communityTeammates, awards, and thank-yous to the BMX family.
Charlie manualling his bikeManual tips
Brisbane SX trackBrisbane SX laps
Indoor jumpIndoor air
Night racing under lightsUnder the lights
Race-day jumpRace day
Helmet close-upBike care video ▶

From Charlie's channel

Race-ready in 20 minutes

How he looks after his race bikes after a weekend of racing, shared to help riders new to the sport.

  1. Quick rinse, keeping the lance away from the bearings (headset, cranks and hubs).
  2. Apply bike cleaner, leave it a few minutes, then wash off and dry thoroughly.
  3. Clean the chain.
  4. Work top to bottom, checking every Allen bolt and nut from the bars to the back wheel.
  5. Re-lube the chain.
  6. Set tyres to your preferred race pressure. Race ready. 🏆
Proudly racing for Team · 2026 best team · Elite

12 What's next

This is only the start

New season, new goals, same motto. Follow the journey.

Follow on Instagram Follow on TikTok

Brands & sponsorship enquiries: message @charliecottonbmx on Instagram