Ténéré Yamaha Shines on Stage 3 at Africa Eco Race

Ténéré Yamaha delivers a strong Stage 3 at the Africa Eco Race as Kevin Gallas secures second place while Gautier Paulin and Alessandro Botturi finish inside the top six to stay in overall contention.

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The Africa Eco Race finally came alive on Stage 3 and the Ténéré Yamaha Rally Team wasted no time making a statement.

After days of disrupted racing due to brutal weather, riders were thrown straight into their first true test of the rally: a long, punishing special packed with soft sand, rocky tracks and the endless dunes of Chegaga. It was the kind of stage that exposes weaknesses fast.

Instead, Yamaha found strength across the board.

By the end of the day, Kevin Gallas stood on the podium once again, while Gautier Paulin and Alessandro Botturi delivered steady, calculated rides to keep the team firmly in contention overall.

The route from Tagounite to Assa was anything but friendly. A short liaison gave way to a gruelling 440km special where navigation mistakes could cost minutes or entire stages. Deep sand sapped energy, rocks punished tyres and the dunes demanded precision throttle control. It was rally raid in its rawest form.

For Paulin, still adapting to life on two wheels in rally competition after his motocross career, the learning curve continued upward. The Frenchman rode with increasing confidence, managing the navigation-heavy opening kilometres before finding his rhythm later in the day. He crossed the line fourth fastest and now sits sixth overall, steadily building momentum in his debut campaign.

Botturi, meanwhile, faced one of the toughest tasks in rally racing: opening the stage. With no tracks to follow and full responsibility for navigation, the Italian veteran had to carve the route for everyone behind him — a known disadvantage. A small waypoint error briefly slowed his charge, but experience kicked in and he recovered quickly, bringing the bike home sixth on the day. He remains well within striking distance of the leaders in fifth overall.

The standout performance came from Gallas.

Competing in only his third rally raid, the German rider continued to punch well above his experience level. Calm, clean and mistake-free, he powered through the special to finish second, securing his second straight podium finish. The result lifts him to second overall in the standings and marks him as one of the surprises of this year’s race.

Across the bivouac, the mood in the Yamaha camp was one of quiet confidence. With all three riders delivering consistent results and the Ténéré 700 Rally machines running flawlessly, the foundation for a strong campaign is clearly there.

Next up, the rally shifts west toward the Atlantic coast, where another mammoth special awaits. Nearly 500km of mixed terrain will test both speed and endurance as competitors push on toward Khnifiss.

If Stage 3 proved anything, it’s that Yamaha isn’t just surviving this rally, they’re very much in the fight.