On July 25, the “Mande” kartodrome in Bačiūnai, Šiauliai became one of the largest karting centers in the Baltics. The third stage of the “Rotax Max Challenge Lithuania,” organized together with the fourth stage of the “Rotax Max Challenge Latvia,” brought together as many as 141 athletes from Lithuania, Latvia, and other countries on one track. Spectators who gathered in large numbers in Šiauliai watched high-level battles all day long, full of impressive overtakes and dramatic finishes.
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This time nature was more favorable to the athletes than in previous stages. The track remained dry all day, so teams did not have to deal with the challenges posed by changing weather conditions, and all attention was focused on speed, strategy, and technical adjustments. However, tension was not lacking even without rain – several sporting incidents required additional work from the judges, so the final results of some categories were confirmed only after all sporting procedures were completed.
In this stage, the organizer Martynas Tankevičius did not compete himself. Instead of racing on the track, he chose another role – working with athletes all day, observing their driving, and sharing his accumulated experience. According to him, such weekends best reflect the value created by joint Baltic states stages.
“Stages organized together with the Latvian championship always require more preparation. Although we all belong to the ‘Rotax’ family, each country has its own internal procedures, working methods, and certain rule interpretations. This becomes a great opportunity not only for athletes to compete in stronger competition but also for organizers to exchange experiences, learn from each other, and jointly improve the quality of events. In such situations, it is most important to remain professional and maintain a unified approach to the sport,” said M. Tankevičius.
In one of the most competitive weekend classes – “ROTAX MAX JUNIOR” – another important victory was won by last year’s “Rotax Grand Finals” world champion Majus Mazinas. Although the final result may seem confident, the athlete himself admitted that due to the large number of international rivals, every lap required maximum concentration. “This weekend the pressure was definitely felt. When there are so many fast athletes from different countries on the track, you cannot afford even the slightest mistake. Even if I am in first place on the last lap, I never relax until the finish. In karting, everything can change in an instant, so I try to stay focused until the last meters,” said M. Mazinas.
Tomas Rudokas, competing this season in the European “Formula 4” championship, briefly returned to karting. He used a free weekend to start in the “ROTAX DD2” class, where he finished fourth.
The young racer did not hide that this time he lacked precision. “I felt that in some situations I entered corners too fast and tried to push too much. Because of that, I lost a few important positions. However, such starts are very useful – every track and every weekend allows you to learn something new. The Latvians were very fast, and Edgars Vilcans showed a great pace and became an additional motivation for me to improve even more,” said T. Rudokas.
The youngest “BABY” class athletes – Domantas Senikas, Jonas Nekrošius, and Teodoras Stepačiovas – as usual were awarded symbolic trophies. In this category, results are not yet ranked by places because the most important thing is the first racing experience and introduction to sports karting. The same philosophy applies to the “ROTAX NANO” class, where awards were received by Augusts Majors, Toms Gruzins, Valters Kursiss, Denas Norkus, Ignas Piragis, Patriks Lapins, Emma Tiitson, Ralf Tiitson, Gustė Norkutė, Vytautas Krikščiūnas, Jonas Ramanauskas, and Majus Norkus.
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In the “ROTAX MICRO MAX U9” category, the strongest was Vilius Tauras Bakutis, who beat Nagrado Rems Ballods and Karims Kukutis. In the “ROTAX MICRO MAX” final, Aras Paskalis Bagatyrius crossed the finish line fastest, Jokūbas Juozaitis was second, and Jonas Gelžinis third.
In the “ROTAX MINI AMATEUR” class, the first two places were won by brothers Anrijs and Valters Vazniai, while Martins Lapins triumphed in the “ROTAX MINI MAX” races. Karlis Bernsons won the silver award, and the third place was taken by Lithuanian Remigijus Kriaučiūnas. In the “JUNIOR CLUB” standings, Otilija Grandberga won, beating Armands Mednis.
Besides M. Mazinas’ victory in the “ROTAX MAX JUNIOR” class, Jack Collinson and Joris Žygimantas Stankevičius also stood on the podium. In the “ROTAX MAX SENIOR” category, the fastest was Rodrigo Kakers, second place went to Artjoms Šestakovs, and Lithuanian Linas Volungevičius finished third. In the “SENIOR CLUB” standings, Normantas Arvasevičius won, beating Laurynas Karalevičius and Ugnė Puškoriūtė.
In the “ROTAX DD2” final, Edgars Vilcans was unbeatable, followed by Kaspar Joel Joepere and Romans Rodionovs. In the “ROTAX DD2 MASTERS” class, the victory was won by Mykolas Mazinas, second place by Ricards Kalnciems, and third by Rudis Klavins. In the “DD2 CLUB” category, the strongest was Karlis Bricis, and in the “DD2 HEAVY” class – Markuss Spikis.
Among the “Tillotson” categories, “Tillotson Heavy” was won by Marko Priednieks, “Tillotson Junior” by Kristofers Lakis, and “Tillotson Senior” by Daniels Peteris Berzins.
After three stages of the “Rotax Max Challenge Lithuania,” the season intrigue only grows stronger. The record number of participants, full spectator stands, and the joint stage with the Latvian championship once again confirmed that Baltic cooperation raises the level of karting throughout the region. The next championship stage awaits athletes at the “333” kartodrome in Riga, where the Lithuanian championship will take place together with the “Rotax Nordic Challenge” stage. There, participants will face even stronger international competition and some of the most important points of the season.
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