The Ténéré Yamaha Rally Team is entering Alessandro Botturi, Gautier Paulin and Kevin Gallas in the Addax Rally 2026 in Morocco. The event around Merzouga runs from 25 to 30 October 2026. According to the team, the focus is less on winning than on preparing for the 2027 Africa Eco Race. That is the main aim of the programme with the Ténéré 700 Rally. The team announcement has been published by, among others, Rally Raid Network (credited there to Yamaha Rally) and Motopress.
Prologue on 25 October, then five stages
The rally begins on Sunday, 25 October 2026, with scrutineering and the prologue. Five stages follow from Monday, 26 October, to Friday, 30 October. The paddock and service area remain in Merzouga throughout the event. According to the official organiser information, the Addax Rally covers around 1,600 kilometres through southern Morocco. Racing takes place on sandy tracks, rocky trails and in the dunes of the Erg Chebbi. The starting point and headquarters is the Nasser Palace Hotel in Merzouga. The organiser also gives approximate stage lengths by class: around 400 kilometres in the Elite class and around 300 kilometres in the PRO class. The sources consulted do not say how many of the 1,600 kilometres are timed special stages and how many are liaison sections. They also do not state which class the Yamaha riders are entered in.
No results were yet available on the organiser’s results page on 25 October 2026.
Three test days in Erfoud
Before the start, the team tested for three days in Erfoud, by its own account. The work covered suspension set-up, navigation with the roadbook, the route book containing the riding instructions, engine mapping and further detail changes to the Ténéré 700 Rally. Team manager Marc Bourgeois describes the Addax Rally as the last event before the Africa Eco Race. What has been learned is to be put into practice there under race conditions. It is also about riders, mechanics and team working as one unit over five days of competition.
Kevin Gallas says the test days were his first chance to test properly with the team. In a translation from English, he says: “Our goal is not to win at all costs. It is really about preparing for the AER and improving as much as possible.” Gautier Paulin highlights the time with the roadbook and navigation that the rally gives him ahead of the Africa Eco Race.
The line-up
- Kevin Gallas is, according to the team, the defending Addax Rally champion. The German won the 2025 edition after a close duel with Botturi. The Italian retired on the final stage with a technical failure.
- Alessandro Botturi has won the Africa Eco Race twice, according to the team. In the 2026 season he took the Italian motorally championship title in the G-1000 class and won the Swank Rally di Sardegna.
- Gautier Paulin is a former MXGP rider and has won the Motocross of Nations five times. Since switching, he has competed in rally raid, meaning long-distance cross-country rallies with navigation.
The 2026 season so far
According to a team statement, Gallas won the Africa Eco Race in February 2026 after almost 6,000 kilometres, with a 41-second lead over his team-mate Paulin. Botturi dropped back after a technical problem and then supported his team-mates. He still won a stage and finished 7th overall. At the Carta Rallye in Morocco in April 2026, Gallas was second overall, Paulin third and Botturi fifth.
The team is competing in partnership with Riders for Health, a project supported by Two Wheels for Life. The details on season results and goals are statements by the team. No independent verification was available for this report.
Sources and photo credits
- Rally Raid Network (Milay Martins): “Ténéré Yamaha Rally Team Ready for Addax Rally”, 24 October 2026, credited to Yamaha Rally. Link
- Motopress: “Addax Rally 2026: Yamaha prepara l’Africa Eco Race”, 23 October 2026. Link
- Total Motorcycle: “Ténéré Yamaha Rally Team Ready for Addax Rally”, 24 October 2026. Link
- Addax Rally (organiser): “Info Ed. 2026”. Link
- Addax Rally (organiser): “Classifications”, as of 25 October 2026. Link
- Photo 1 (dunes, number 71): Yamaha Ténéré 700 Rally in the desert. Photographer not named. Original source: Motopress, published on 23 October 2026. Date of photo not given. No licence details given in the source.
- Photo 2 (coastal dune): Yamaha Ténéré 700 Rally, archive photo. Photographer not named. Original source: Rally Raid Network, published on 24 October 2026, credit given in the report: Yamaha Rally. Date of photo not given. No licence details given in the source.