Four-time World MotoGP Champion Eddie Lawson has been named the recipient of 2026 Maely Lifetime Achievement Award and will be honored on Saturday, January 31, at the sixth annual “Hot Shoe” Hall of Fame Museum and Motorcycle Industry Celebration at the Las Vegas’ Notoriety Theatre in the famed Las Vegas Fremont Street Experience (450 E. Fremont St., 3rd Floor).
This is a press release from Hot Shoe Hall of Fame…
Las Vegas, NV (December 10, 2025) – Motorcycle legend Eddie Lawson, the winningest American World Champion with four 500cc MotoGP titles in the 1980s, has been named the 2026 Maely Lifetime Achievement Award recipient and will be honored on Saturday, Jan. 31, in the sixth annual Hot Shoe Hall of Fame Museum and Motorcycle Industry Celebration at the Las Vegas’ Notoriety Theatre in the famed Las Vegas Fremont Street Experience (450 E. Fremont St., 3rd Floor).
Lawson, originally from Ontario, California, put together one of the greatest resumes for an American motorcycle racer with World 500cc Road Racing Championships in 1984, 1986, 1988 and 1989 after an impressive flat track career and two ABC Superbikers crowns in 1983 and 1985. Lawson scored 31 World 500cc MotoGP race wins as well as taking the coveted Daytona 200 twice in 1986 and 1993.
Back in 1988 (Yamaha) and 1989 (Honda), Lawson became the first rider to win back-to-back World Championships on machines from different manufacturers. He was the fourth satellite rider to win the premier class world title.
A flat track regular at Corona and Ascot by age 12, Lawson earned his AMA Expert license in 1978 at age 19 (riding for famed Yamaha tuner Shell Thuet) and he was one of the fastest racers on the SoCal circuit.
This flat-track experience proved invaluable for Lawson who was invited to try out for Kawasaki’s Superbike team. Eddie made an immediate impact in road racing with AMA Superbike championships in 1981 and 1982 as well as the 1980 and 1981 AMA 250cc national titles for Kawasaki.
After his prestigious two-wheel career, Lawson moved to four wheels in the Open Wheel divisions with limited schedules in the Indy Lights in 1992 and 1994. Driving a full season for Tasman Motorsports, Eddie placed fourth in the final point standings, including a victory at Cleveland. In 1996, Eddie drove in the CART IndyCar Series for Galles Racing with two sixth place finishes as rookie.
“We are very excited to add Eddie to our prestigious list of the Hot Shoe Hall of Fame Lifetime Achievement Award,” said Gene Woods, founder and curator of the Las Vegas-based Hot Shoe Hall of Fame, featuring the greatest motorcyclists of all time. “Eddie has an incredible motorcycle racing legacy with his many championships and race wins. Like many of the great American road racers, Eddie began his career in the dirt, and his ‘Hot Shoe’ was an important element to his famed career. We are very happy to salute Eddie on January 31 here in Las Vegas at the Hot Shoe Hall of Fame presentation.”
Lawson joins Judy Maely (2020), Kenny Roberts (2021), Larry Huffman (2022), Brad Lackey (2023) and Mert Lawwill (2024) and Malcolm Smith (2025) as the seventh member of the Hot Shoe Hall of Fame Lifetime Achievement to the motorcycle industry award.
This year’s celebration also includes a special association with the annual Mecum Auctions motorcycle event at the South Point Casino and Resort. Each Hot Shoe attendee will receive free admission to the Mecum event, a $300 value!!
In addition to Lawson’s Lifetime Award, over 50 new inductees will be a part of the 2026 class for the “Hot Shoe” Hall of Fame when this year’s event gets underway on Saturday, Jan. 31, with the popular “meet and greet” celebration with doors opening at 5:30 p.m. The “Legends Karting Race” is set for 4 p.m. with on-stage presentations are scheduled for 7 p.m. The event is free and please register at www.hotshoehof.com
The “Hot Shoe” is the symbol that recognizes the cream of the crop of motorcycle racing stars who used a very specialized tool, the steel shoe, to assist them in navigating the dirt track corners.
Special hotel discount rates for the sixth annual “Hot Shoe Hall of Fame” celebration at the historic El Cortez Hotel and Casino and Downtown Grand Hotel are available with “Hot Shoe” promo codes.
In the last five years, Woods, “Hot Shoe” Hall of Fame president Keith Mashburn, the “Hot Shoe” Hall of Fame Board of Directors and the event staff have produced the “Hot Shoe” Hall of Fame Museum Celebrations attended by a star-studded affair of motorcycle legends. The “Hot Shoe” Hall of Fame Museum, full of steel shoes from numerous motorcycle icons, is located at the Gene Woods Racing Experience karting track (450 E. Fremont St., #171, Las Vegas) in the Fremont St. Experience.
For further information on the “Hot Shoe” Hall of Fame celebration and being Hall of Fame recipient, please visit the website at www.hotshoehof.com
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