Hero MotoSports Team Rally head for its 10th Dakar Rally and round one of the 2026 FIM World Rally-Raid Championship in January with a three-rider squad of Ross Branch, Jose Cornejo and Tobias Ebster.

Marking the team’s 10th straight outing at the Dakar Rally, “the world’s largest manufacturer of motorcycles and scooters”, Hero MotoSports Rally Team, heads into the new W2RC season with two factory riders in the RallyGP category – the Chilean athlete Nacho Cornejo and the 2024 FIM World Rally-Raid Champion from Botswana, Ross Branch, plus Austrian Tobias Ebster fighting for the Rally2 class honours.

Botswanan Ross Branch heads for his fourth Dakar with Hero MotoSports and remains one of the top contenders for the Dakar title. Branch was running inside the top three overall during the first half of Dakar 2025 before a crash ended his podium charge.

Branch’s best Dakar outing came in 2024, where he secured a remarkable second-place finish - delivering a historic milestone for Hero as the first-ever Dakar podium for an Indian manufacturer. He then went on to claim the FIM world title in the same year – a milestone for himself, his team and his country.

Preparing for his second Dakar with Hero MotoSports, Nacho Cornejo brings an impressive Dakar track record - 9 stage wins and a career-best 4th overall in 2020. The Chilean finished in seventh place in 2025, still getting acclimatised to the Hero Rally 450 but helping securing the team’s second-best Dakar result to date.

Ebster holding Rally2 hopes

One of rally-raid’s brightest emerging talents, Tobias Ebster joined Hero MotoSports in 2025 and heads for his first Dakar as a factory rider. He burst onto the scene by winning the “Original by Motul” category in his debut Dakar in 2024 and finishing 20th overall - earning the Best Rookie title. He climbed further to 9th overall in Dakar 2025, becoming the top privateer.

Wolfgang Fischer, Team Manager, Hero MotoSports Team Rally: “As the countdown to Dakar 2026 and the opening round of the next W2RC season continues, our preparations are in full swing. All race bikes, spares, assistance vehicles and equipment have been tested and shipped from Barcelona and will be received in Yanbu on December 30. The riders are currently in their final phase of training with navigation drills and race simulations underway.”

“After overcoming challenges in 2025 and achieving strong development progress on the Hero 450 Rally, we are excited to see Ross Branch and Nacho Cornejo attack the Rally GP class once again and look forward to watching Tobias Ebster step up in Rally2 with the goal of pushing for top honors. With a fantastic crew behind us and the unwavering support of the global Hero family, we look forward to taking on the desert, testing our limits and chasing new milestones. Stay tuned - the adventure begins soon.”

Photo Credit: Hero MotoSports