Jesús Calleja always seems to be one for adventure. Five months after heading to outer space, the TV personality announced Wednesday that he will make his return to the Dakar Rally in 2026. He will race a Century CR7 with Edu Blanco as navigator.

“We’re going to the Dakar. God is with us on this adventure,” Calleja remarked at his Dakar project unveiling. He also plans to race this weekend’s Baja Aragón followed by potentially the Rallye du Maroc in October.

Calleja is a mountaineer and adventurer who has climbed the Seven Summits, including Mount Everest in 2005, and traveled to both North and South Poles. His exploits are covered in his award-winning TV series like Desafío Extremo, Planeta Calleja, and Volando Voy. In February, he was on the crew for Blue Origin’s NS-30 flight, where he became the first Spanish non-astronaut to enter outer space.

Naturally, his portfolio also means he’s quite savvy with disciplines like rally raid and desert racing when in the competitive spirit. He competed in the Rallye des Pharaons on a bike in 2006 and 2008, and has also done the Rallye du Maroc and Baja 1000. Calleja has experience at the Baja Aragón on two and four wheels, winning the T1.2 subclass in 2021.

He made his Dakar Rally debut in 2011, but hasn’t had much luck reaching the finish. He retired from each of his three tries during the South American era in 2011, 2018, and 2019. When the race moved to Saudi Arabia in 2020, he finally completed the event with a 30th overall. His most recent start came in 2022 with the Astara Concept 01 (a variant of Century’s CR6), only to bow out yet again.

That’s why for 2026, he’s opted for a Century CR7. The newest T1+ car from Century Racing, the CR7 scored a sixth at this year’s Dakar Rally with Mathieu Serradori while Brian Baragwanath was tenth prior to his disqualification.

Blanco is a shareholder in EBRO, a Spanish marque developing their own T1+ for the 2026 Dakar. He was also EBRO’s CEO when the company developed an electric SSV that appeared at the 2022 race.

Featured image credit: Blue Origin