Team Galicia claims victory at Dakar
Spanish rider Fran Gómez Pallas won the Mission 1000 motorcycle category at Dakar 2026 on the Arctic Leopard EXE 880 Rally. Through consistent riding and effective energy management, he finished ahead of the other competitors in this experimental Dakar category.
Team Galicia also delivered an outstanding team performance:
Fran Gómez Pallas – 1st place (Mission 1000 motorcycle)
Esther Merino – 3rd place
Miguel Puertas – 4th place
This result confirms the reliability and performance of Arctic Leopard electric motorcycles in the extreme conditions of the Dakar Rally.
Mission 1000: Dakar’s technology laboratory
The Mission 1000 category was created by the Dakar organisers to test alternative-energy vehicles, particularly electric and hydrogen-powered machines.
Participants complete stages of approximately 100 kilometres in the Saudi Arabian desert, with specific assessment criteria:
energy management
consistency in stage times
mechanical and technological reliability
The goal is clear: to develop the technologies that will shape the future of rally-raid and off-road mobility.
Arctic Leopard confirms the potential of electric motorcycles in rally-raid
Team Galicia’s victory at Dakar 2026 shows that electric motorcycles can meet the toughest challenges in rally-raid.
With the EXE 880 Rally, Arctic Leopard demonstrates its ability to develop high-performance motorcycles capable of operating in extreme environments while exploring new technological solutions for off-road riding.
This achievement marks an important step in the evolution of electric off-road motorcycles as they gradually establish their place in international competition.