B. Vanagas will make his fourth start in the “HunGarian Baja” race. The first one, in 2022, ended immediately with a victory – at that time, the Lithuanian together with Kuldar Sikk won four out of five special stages and overtook the closest rivals by more than eight minutes.
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Hungary was also successful for B. Vanagas last year. The “Gurtam Toyota Gazoo Racing Baltics” crew with A. Paliukėnas was the fastest in the prologue and won the first special stage, but later a technical fire prevented turning the fight into a final result.
To Hungary – from second place in the championship
This year’s Hungary stage is important for B. Vanagas and A. Paliukėnas also in terms of the tournament. After three completed FIA European Baja Cup stages, the Lithuanian with 132 points is in second place in the overall drivers’ standings and is only 16 points behind the leader, Portuguese Paulo Rodrigues. In the “Ultimate” category, B. Vanagas is currently leading.
In the last stage held in Italy, B. Vanagas and A. Paliukėnas finished third overall and scored the maximum FIA European Baja Cup points haul.
According to the initial calendar, “Baja España Aragón” was supposed to take place before Hungary, but due to the extreme forest fire danger in the Teruel region at the end of July, the race was postponed. The organizers have already announced a new date – the Spanish stage has been moved to September 11–13.
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“We know Hungary and have good memories here – we have won, and last year we also had speed. But this year the situation is different because we are already playing championship mathematics.
We are first in the “Ultimate” category and second in the overall European Cup standings. That means we have to be fast, but the most important thing is to bring back points. The season has passed the halfway point and every mistake now costs more and more,” says Benediktas Vanagas, who achieved the highest result in the Dakar car category among Baltic athletes, before the start.
“HunGarian Baja” will take place on August 13–15 in the Várpalota surroundings. The “Gurtam Toyota Gazoo Racing Baltics” crew Benediktas Vanagas and Aisvydas Paliukėnas will start with the “Toyota GR DKR Hilux EVO T1+ Ultimate” car.
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