What did Yamaha’s victory at the Africa Eco Race prove?
Yamaha was victorious at the 2026 Africa Eco Race, but what does it mean exactly?
Yamaha and its Tenere 700 Rally secured first and second in the general classification at the 2026 Africa Eco Race, with Kevin Gallas winning the overall event ahead of teammate Gautier Paulin.
The one-two finish for Yamaha was impressive in itself, but so was the dominance it displayed during the second half of the 12-stage race.
From stage five onwards, Yamaha riders won five out of the remaining eight stages, with Gallas claiming victory on two occasions. Paulin won on three occasions, which gave Yamaha a total of six stage wins after Alessandro Botturi won stage two, which was actually the first stage of the event following the cancellation of stage one due to bad weather.
You see, dominance by one manufacturer is not all that surprising in racing. Just look at what Ducati has achieved in MotoGP over the last few years. And while Yamaha’s performance at the Africa Eco Race was impressive, we should remember that just last year it was Aprilia and its Tuareg 660 that won the race.
However, what this year’s event taught us is that Yamaha has consistency all across the board. That’s because positions four, six and seven were also occupied by Tenere 700 Rally riders, with only one KTM and one Aprilia managing to split the five Yamahas.
Just as impressive was the margin that the top two Yamaha riders had over the rest of the field, as Jean-Loup Lepan and his KTM 450 machine were over 16 minutes down on the win.
Last year’s Africa Eco Race winner with Aprilia, Jacopo Cerutti, finished fourth in the twin-cylinder class behind Gallas, Paulin and Lepan, and fifth in the overall standings. But Cerutti finished over one hour and 38 minutes down on the overall win.
Racing can change quickly, and next year’s event could very well throw up a different winner. However, it’s clear that Yamaha’s Tenere 700 Rally has positioned itself as one of the heavy favourites in this type of racing discipline going forward.
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After graduating with a sports journalism degree, Robert joined Crash.net to lead the WorldSBK coverage in 2021, while also providing MotoGP coverage. Fulfilling that role for over three years, Robert was able to put his knowledge about all things racing to the test.
