Lean Angle

Lean angle is the degree to which a motorcycle or vehicle tilts to the side when cornering, measured from vertical.

In motorsport, especially motorcycle racing, riders lean their bikes into turns to maintain balance and negotiate corners at high speeds. The laws of physics require this tilting to counteract centrifugal forces that would otherwise push the vehicle off its intended path.

Professional racers achieve extreme lean angles—sometimes exceeding 60 degrees in MotoGP—while amateur riders typically reach 30-45 degrees. Greater lean angles generally allow faster cornering, but are limited by tire grip, ground clearance, and rider skill. Many racers use knee sliders to gauge their lean angle by feeling when their knee touches the track.