Yamaha Ténéré Rally Bosnia 2025

Yamaha had pulled the plug on its rally team in 2022 after its last factory entry in the Dakar Rally. Over the company’s time in the rallies, its riders had brought home a total of nine victories (1979-1980 with Cyril Neveu, 1991-1998 with Edi Orioli and Stéphane Peterhansel). 

Factory rider Adrien van Beveren had great potential, but between 2018 and 2021, he failed to finish four times in a row due to crashes or mechanical failures. Unlike the victorious KTM and Honda bikes, the Yamaha was not designed as a rally bike, but derived from an enduro model. It had passed through the hands of too many technicians over the years. 

It would have taken a complete redesign to make it competitive again. Therefore, the Japanese company shifted its focus from rally activities to customer sports and amateur events with the Ténéré 700 (two-cylinder bikes are no longer permitted in the Dakar). 

Italian rider Alessandro Botturi achieved respectable results in the last two editions of the Africa Eco Race, finishing second on the twin. Ambitious private riders can buy into the factory team led by Frenchman Marc Bourgeois and compete alongside the top riders at various events.

Tale of Two Trails

This approach also explains the Ténéré Rally Bosnia 2025, organized by the German Yamaha subsidiary, which took place for the first time in June 2025. The rally raid was open to all models bearing the Ténéré name.