On a spring afternoon at ZXMOTO’s headquarters, founder Zhang Xue stood surrounded by media. “If you didn’t have the right connections, you wouldn’t have made it through the door today,” he quipped with his signature blend of grit and humor.

The contrast is stark. In 2006, a 19-year-old Zhang chased a television crew on his motorcycle through the rain for three hours just to secure a few seconds of screen time.

Twenty years later, he stands at the helm of a maturing industrial legion backed by a global community of enthusiasts.

On March 28, at Portugal’s Algarve International Circuit, the ZXMOTO 820RR-RS crossed the finish line of the World Superbike Championship with a commanding four-second lead. In elite racing, four seconds is more than a gap — it is a milestone. This victory marks the first time a Chinese manufacturer has claimed the top spot in a series long dominated by Ducati, Kawasaki, and Yamaha.

Though the company is only 2 years old, Zhang insists this moment was two decades in the making. In 2013, with just 20,000 yuan (US$2,800) and zero connections, he moved to Chongqing, the “Motorcycle Capital of China.” His early days were defined by what he calls “top‑tier loneliness.” But his passion had been forged earlier: at 17, he opened his own repair shop; at 19, his “shameless” persistence led him to stalk media crews to showcase his riding skills.

Zhang’s strategy was never about waiting for resources — it was about leveraging limited assets to seize the next opportunity. With his initial 20,000 yuan, he modified a public‑mold bike, sold it via forums for upfront cash, and raised 500,000 yuan to fund production. When competitors began copying the model, he abandoned it to seek a new path.

To fund a new design, Zhang worked as a one‑man army on Taobao — copywriter, designer, and customer service rep. When he lacked funds for mass production, he “borrowed” hundreds of thousands from followers, paying them back in motor oil “interest.”

By February 2025, the company was insolvent. Zhang borrowed 7 million yuan from friends, suppliers, and even his landlord to pay salaries. The launch of the 500RR that March was a “do or die” moment that ultimately saved the company.

Known for a fiery temper — he refuses to even get a car driver’s license because “it wastes time” — Zhang is focused solely on R&D. In 2024, he left Kove Moto, a brand he co‑founded, due to “divergent dreams” with investors. He then founded his eponymous brand. In an unusual move for a CEO, Zhang banned dealers from selling the high‑performance 820RR to riders with less than a year of experience. “I want fewer people to die,” he said, acknowledging it would cut sales by 10%. “I don’t need that 10%; the company won’t die without it.”

三月下旬的一个春日午后，在张雪机车总部，创始人张雪被媒体团团围住。“要是没点关系，今天这扇门你根本进不来。”他以标志性的幽默与硬气调侃道。

2006年，19岁的张雪因渴望展示车技，冒雨追随电视节目组三个小时，最终赢得了拍摄机会。

如今，他不再单打独斗 — 身后是一支日益成熟的产业队伍，还有全球无数摩托车爱好者的支持。

3月28日，在葡萄牙阿尔加维国际赛道上，820RR-RS赛车以领先4秒的绝对优势冲过世界超级摩托车锦标赛的终点线。在顶级赛场上，4秒的差距不仅是时间，更是一座历史性的里程碑。这是中国制造商在外国品牌长期垄断的赛事中首次夺魁。

尽管公司才成立两年，张雪却说，这一刻是二十年磨一剑。

2013年，张雪怀揣仅有的两万元， 只身来到重庆。他把那段日子称为“顶级的孤独”。这份热忱由来已久：他17岁开修理店，19岁凭着“不要脸”的执着蹲守媒体车队，只为展示车技。“我现在大概还是那个人，”他坦言，“只是比当年少了点‘不要脸’。”

张雪的创业之道是用有限的筹码撬动下一个机会。他用最初的两万元改装了一辆公模车，通过论坛预售回笼资金，凑出50万元投入生产。当竞品开始仿制时，他果断放弃，另寻新路。为给新设计筹钱，他在淘宝上身兼文案、设计、客服于一身。没有量产的资金，他就向粉丝“借”来几十万，用机油作为“利息”偿还。

2025年2月，公司资不抵债。他向朋友、供应商甚至房东借了700万发工资。同年3月，500RR的发布最终救回了公司。

张雪脾气火爆 。 他甚至不愿考汽车驾照，因为“浪费时间”，一心扑在研发上。2024年，因与投资人“梦想不同”，他离开了自己参与创办的凯越机车，随后创立了以自己名字命名的品牌。

作为CEO，他做了一件不寻常的事：禁止经销商将高性能的820RR卖给驾龄不足一年的骑手。“我不想看到那么多人死，”他说，并承认这会让销量减少10%，“我不需要那10%，公司少了这10%也死不了。”

(Translated by DeepSeek)