After a successful inaugural year, the Yamaha Ténéré World Raid Team, in partnership with Riders for Health, returns for its second season with an expanded rally program in 2023, including the launch of the all-new Ténéré Spirit Experience, which begins with the Morocco Desert Challenge from the 23rd to the 30th of April.
The Ténéré World Raid Team was set up not only to continue Yamaha’s rich and storied history of racing in Africa, which started in 1979 with victory for Cyril Neveu in the first-ever running of the Paris Dakar Rally, but also to focus on reconnecting Yamaha's Rally program with the genuine spirit of adventure using machines that customers can also enjoy.
It is this rich history in the Paris Dakar that is commemorated with the livery that will adorn the bikes of the Ténéré World Raid Team this season. Based on the iconic colourway raced to victory in 1993 by Dakar legend Stéphane Peterhansel, the distinctive retro styling also celebrates a significant milestone for the Yamaha Ténéré family, which celebrates its 40th anniversary this year.
Riders Alessandro Botturi and Pol Tarrés return for the 2023 season on board their GYTR-kitted Yamaha Ténéré 700 World Raid bikes as they look to build on the impressive results they achieved during their first year.
The new season also brings new management, with Marc Bourgeois taking over the running of the team through his company MBSM on behalf of Yamaha. The former official Yamaha Dakar and Enduro World Championship team manager brings a wealth of experience to the project and will spearhead an exciting new Yamaha Motor Europe program for 2023, the Ténéré Spirit Experience.
Over 40,000 riders across Europe are already enjoying the high torque engine, agile handling, and serious off-road capabilities that make the Ténéré 700 one of the most versatile motorcycles ever produced by Yamaha. Living up to the bike’s heritage and offering a unique way for people to embrace their longing for adventure, for 2023, Yamaha Motor Europe is offering Ténéré owners the chance to fulfil a dream by joining the Ténéré World Raid Team at each of the rallies they are competing in.
At each event, up to 20 Ténéré Spirit Experience customers will be transported with their bikes to the rally, where they will get to ride parts of each stage while following a route parallel to the main race competitors. The participants will travel with and live alongside the Ténéré World Raid Team and riders in the bivouac, creating a truly once-in-a-lifetime experience that will give them a taste of what it is like to compete in Rally Raid and perhaps fuel their own racing ambitions.
Click here to learn more about the Ténéré Spirit Experience and how you can get involved.
The 2023 season also sees the extension of the project’s partnership with Riders for Health to raise awareness of the charity's tremendous work supplying, managing and maintaining motorcycles for health-focused operations in Africa. During 2022 Yamaha Motor Europe helped raise over €30,000 for the charity, with Botturi and Tarrés taking their race bikes to visit Riders for Health in The Gambia after the Africa Eco Race to see for themselves the fantastic work they do first-hand.
