Johnston had been hot property after a fantastic year, during which the Fermanagh man won the Superstock races at the North West 200 and Ulster Grand Prix and finished on the rostrum behind Ian Hutchinson and Michael Dunlop in the class at the Isle of Man TT on the ECR/Burdens BMW S1000RR.

Despite admitting he had received a number of ‘flattering’ offers, the 26-year-old has remained loyal to team boss Phil Reed and will ride BMW and Triumph machinery in the Superbike, Superstock and Supersport classes again next season.

Johnston, who is among the favourites for victory at the 49th Suncity Group Macau Grand Prix in November, said: “Phil will not mind me saying that I had a few very flattering offers for next season. When I sat down and looked at it all, I had to ask myself would anyone be able to offer more than we have here at East Coast Racing.

“We have a great bunch of guys with a lot of experience and with the support of BMW Motorrad and the development we have done with the 675 Triumph, I know we can do a top job next year.

“I’m not one for making rash predictions as that just sets you up for a fall, but I do believe we can build on this year’s results and hopefully add some more silverware to the collection.”

Team owner Reed said the key objective as always is to challenge for a coveted TT win next June and is delighted to have retained Johnston for another season.

“Lee has become part of the family here at East Coast Racing and we are really pleased that we can now build on the success we achieved this season,”

he said.

“We go racing primarily for the enjoyment of it all, but success breeds success, and with wins at the North West 200 and Ulster Grand Prix this year – our goal is to hopefully crack the code to a TT top step next June.”