Edgar
Canet
Spain
·
Rally Raid
Date of birth | 16 March 2005 |
|---|---|
Place of birth | La Garriga |
Age | 21 |
Nationality | Spain |
Career start | 2023 |
Discipline | Rally Raid Bike |
Edgar Canet announced himself as one of rally raid's brightest young talents with a remarkable debut at the 2025 Dakar Rally. Riding in the Rally2 class, the Spaniard won the category and finished an outstanding eighth overall in the world's toughest off-road race, immediately establishing himself as Spain's great new hope in the discipline.
Unlike other motocross racers his age who’ve won national youth titles and gone on to race in the incredibly competitive European 125cc Championship, Edgar’s eyes weren’t really on making it to MXGP, rather following in the footsteps of Spanish legends of the Dakar like his long-time mentor Nani Roma and Marc Coma.
A helping hand from a Dakar legend
A Dakar champion in both car and bike categories, Roma first saw Edgar riding was when he was 10 and stepped in to help him develop as a rider. So, as soon as Edgar turned 18, Roma also helped him make the move to long-distance racing.
The success was instant. Edgar rode to second place in the seven-stage 1,000 Dunas race through Morroco to Malaga in Spain and then won the Oasis Rally – two perfect introductory rally raids.
Ready to test himself on the big stage
Intro over, the now 19-year-old Edgar wanted to test himself against the world’s best in the FIM World Rally Raid Championship, signing-up for the 2024 Ultimate Rally Raid Portugal in the production-based Rally2 class. There he amazed the rally raid world by racing to third in the prologue, 11th place in the overall Bike standings and third in Rally2.
He continued to impress with the same result at Argentina’s Desafío Ruta 40 and then made the elite riders really sit up and take note by finishing seventh overall and second in Rally2 at Rallye du Maroc, the tried and tested pre-Dakar shakedown race.
The biggest break of his fledgling career
These results gave Edgar enough points to qualify for the Dakar Rally 2025, but it wasn’t until just two weeks before the January 3 kick-off that he had an entry to his debut Dakar confirmed when Red Bull KTM Factory Racing signed him up to race aboard their 450 Rally Replica customer bike in Rally2.
The lack of preparation time and experience did nothing to slow Edgar, who rode more like a Dakar veteran than a teenage rookie to not only finish, but do so in such style that left nobody in any doubt that he has everything needed to be a future champion. He dominated the Rally2 class from the opening prolouge stage all the way to the finish to claim victory and also mixed it with the Bike class’ best across all 12 stages, finishing an incredible second overall on Stage 7.
Continued success points to very bright future
Flying high after that incredible Dakar debut, Edgar kicked on to win four of the five events that make up the FIM Rally-Raid World Championship and claim the Rally2 overall title at a romp. All before his 20th birthday.
His rapid rise continued into 2026. Promoted into Red Bull KTM Factory Racing's top programme, Edgar claimed multiple Dakar stage podiums and victories while proving he could consistently run at the front against the sport's established stars. In little more than a year, he has gone from promising newcomer to one of rally raid's brightest young talents.
After these performances, it seems only a matter of time before Edgar is fighting for the overall Bike title in Dakar and the world’s other great rally raids – something he already has in his mind: “It's been many years since we had a Spanish Dakar champion on motorbikes. That's what I want to be. The possibility of lifting the Touareg Trophy is in my mind one day. I'll give it my all. There’ll be no lack of commitment, attitude, effort or work.”