Javi Vega parts ways with Yamaha

Barring surprises, the 2025 Dakar Rally could be a Yamaha-less race in the Rally2 class. Javi Vega announced Sunday that he has ended his partnership with the Japanese marque after six Dakars together.

Vega had raced a Yamaha WR450F Rally at the Dakar Rally since his début in 2019. His entries were overseen by Pont Grup, a Spanish motorcycle racing programme that covers a variety of disciplines and manufacturers albeit with focus on Yamaha.

However, Vega explained in a social media post that “Yamaha’s priorities changed” in 2022 when they shuttered their rally raid team after that year’s Dakar Rally. Yamaha continues to maintain a rally bike division, though for non-FIM rallies with focus on the Yamaha Ténéré 700, which is too powerful for current FIM standards. António Maio was the only other person on a Yamaha motorcycle at the 2024 Dakar, competing in the premier RallyGP class with support from Yamaha Portugal.

“I can only say thank you,” wrote Vega. “I’ve been very fortunate and have had unforgettable experiences that anyone would wish for, but now our paths are diverging.

“Four Dakars with a dream project, followed by two more solo, where you gave me a chance and believed in me.

“Two years ago, Yamaha’s priorities changed. I tried to hold on, but today we can no longer continue together.

“It was hard to make this decision because I’m leaving behind so many incredible things, but as an athlete, I also need a fresh start, new motivations, and to leave behind this beautiful chapter, thinking about my mental health as well.

“For me, it’s clear. I hope it is for Yamaha as well; we were the last bike to stand on the Dakar podium.”

After finishing seventy-fourth in 2019, Vega switched to racing solo in the Original by Motul class the following year. His best run came in 2023 when he finished runner-up in Malle Moto and thirtieth among all bikes, which forced him to move into the broader Rally2 class for 2024 though he was permitted to continue without a crew. Vega overcame a sprained ankle and a rash of mechanical issues to finish sixty-ninth in Rally2 while his overall time would have been good for nineteenth in Malle Moto.

While Vega did not announce his new bike, he intends to run the 2025 Dakar Rally on 3–17 January.