Tomasz Bialkowski sweeps Baja Poland on home soil

Tomasz Białkowski has been enjoying a solid season outside his Polish home soil, but you knew he was going to step it up when the FIA World Baja Cup came knocking for the Baja Poland. Białkowski won the Prologue and all four Selective Sections for a convincing victory in the SSV class and a top-ten finish among all FIA entries regardless of category.

Despite snags like tyre punctures, Białkowski wiped the floor in SSV. He beat SSV points leader Fernando Álvarez by five minutes on the first day of racing before holding off Alexander Toril and Álvarez on the second by just twenty-eight seconds and a minute and a half, respectively.

Toril was eventually dropped to the bottom of the order with a four-hour, thirty-second time penalty. His crew replaced a damaged driveshaft shortly after refuelling at the end of SS2, which is forbidden as the refuel and neutralisation zones fall under parc fermé. Toril and his brother Miguel were also fined €250 because a team member recorded themselves refuelling both cars while wearing just a T-shirt and shorts.

Białkowski was not the only sweeper of the race as João Ferreira did the same in Ultimate. He led a Mini JCW Rally Plus 1–2 finish ahead of Michał Małuszyński, a year after Krzysztof Hołowczyc scored the T1+ vehicle’s maiden triumph at the 2023 Baja Poland. Hołowczyc, racing a BMW X3, was unable to defend his win due to an engine failure. Yazeed Al-Rajhi also exited because of a new yet defective factory differential.

The Challenger of Ghislain de Mévius finished third behind Ferreira and Małuszyński.

Besides being the fourth round of the World Baja Cup, the race was also part of the Polish Cross-Country Rally Championship (Rajdowe Mistrzostwa Polski Samochodów Terenowych) where Małuszyński was the fastest among points-eligible competitors ahead of Maciej Giemza‘s SSV. Białkowski was eighth overall in the RMPST results and fourth in SSV.

Martin Koloc finished tenth in RMPST and fifth in Ultimate, running his second career cross-country rally under safer conditions than his début at the Hungarian Baja in early August. His Buggyra ZM Racing also brought trucks for Martin Šoltys and Karel Posledni, who respectively won and finished third in class. Poslední, a longtime crew member for Buggyra, was running his first cross-country race.

“It was a fantastic stress test for us and our car,” said Koloc, who was racing the Red-Lined REVO T1+ while his daughter Aliyyah continues to recover from surgery. “We accelerated steadily throughout the weekend and I don’t think we even made too many mistakes.

“I am very pleased that we are continuously improving the car. Plus, I have great people around me who don’t mind sacrificing their time and who are putting in so much effort to push the car forward. We want to become a competitive rival to the biggest car companies in the world in the long term which is not easy. Established and successful giants like Toyota and Ford are a big challenge. We still have a lot of work to do.”

Tomáš Vrátný joined the Buggyra Tatras on the RMPST truck podium in the maiden race for the new Tatra FF7 truck.

Mikołaj Krysik, the latest Quad rider to migrate to an SSV, finished thirteenth in RMPST after an up and down race. He had lost a half shaft and broke his steering rod at the end of the first day, leaving him coming back to base with just three sturdy wheels, followed by a bent right axle shaft the next day. Nevertheless, he was eighth in SSV in his first time out.

The second day took place on the military training ground of Colonel Franciszek Sadowski Land Forces Training Centre. Perhaps a little too fittingly for the setting, the start of the third leg was delayed after a land mine was reportedly found near the course.

Overall results

FIA

Ultimate

Finish	Overall Finish	Number	Driver	Co-Driver	Team	Vehicle	Class	Time	Margin
1	1	201	João Ferreira	Filipe Palmeiro	X-raid Mini JCW Team	Mini John Cooper Works Rally Plus	T1+	3:44:12.1	Leader
2	2	204	Michał Małuszyński*	Julita Małuszyńska	Michał Małuszyński	Mini John Cooper Works Rally Plus	T1+	3:47:05.9	+ 2:53.8
3	4	203	Włodzimierz Grajek*	Michał Goleniewski	Grajek Rally Team	Toyota Hilux	T1+	3:59:00.2	+ 14:48.1
4	5	206	Miroslav Zapletal	Marek Sýkora	Offroadsport	Ford F-150	T1+	4:00:45.4	+ 16:33.3
5	7	205	Martin Kaczmarski	Armand Monleón	Overdrive Racing	Toyota Hilux Overdrive	T1+	4:01:03.0	+ 16:50.9
6	15	211	Magdalena Zajac	Błażej Czekan	Proxcars TME Rally Team	Toyota Hilux	T1.1	4:29:18.7	+ 45:06.6
7	19	210	Vincent Vroninks*	Dave Berghmans	Vincent Vroninks	Nissan Red-Lined Navara VK56	T1.1	4:43:50.6	+ 59:38.5
8	20	209	Tomasz Baranowski*	Konrad Dudziński	Finarto Racing	Toyota Hilux	T1.1	4:45:28.9	+ 1:01:16.8
DNF	DNF	200	Yazeed Al-Rajhi	Timo Gottschalk	Overdrive Racing	Toyota Hilux Overdrive	T1+	DNF	N/A
DNF	DNF	202	Krzysztof Hołowczyc	Łukasz Kurzeja	Fosfopower	BMW X3	T1.1	DNF	N/A

* – Not competing for FIA World Baja Cup points

Challenger

Finish	Overall Finish	Number	Driver	Co-Driver	Team	Vehicle	Time	Margin
1	3	300	Ghislain de Mévius	Johan Jalet	GRallyTeam	GRally OT3	3:57:04.4	Leader
2	6	302	Eduard Pons	Jaume Betriu	Past-Racing	Taurus T3 Max	4:00:48.9	+ 3:44.5
3	8	305	Hans Weijs*	Mark Salomons	Arcane Racing	Arcane T3	4:01:13.5	+ 4:09.1
4	9	304	Alexandre Pinto*	Bernardo Oliveira	Alexandre Pinto	Can-Am Maverick X3	4:06:58.1	+ 9:53.9
5	13	301	Diego Martinez	Sergio Lafuente	South Racing Can-Am	Can-Am Maverick X3	4:29:10.8	+ 32:06.4
6	15	303	Khalid Aljafla	Andrei Rudnitski	Aljafla Racing	Taurus T3 Max	4:29:53.5	+ 32:49.1
7	17	307	Mark Mustermann*	Michael Zajc	Mark Mustermann	Can-Am Maverick X3	4:35:48.5	+ 38:44.1
8	22	306	Vic Flip*	Gerhard Schmiedberger	Vic Flip	Can-Am Maverick X3	5:06:38.4	+ 1:09:34.0
9	23	308	Richard Aczel*	Wouter Rosegaard	Arcane Racing	Arcane T3	5:58:43.3	+ 2:01:38.9

SSV

Finish	Overall Finish	Number	Driver	Co-Driver	Team	Vehicle	Time	Margin
1	10	405	Tomasz Białkowski*	Dariusz Baśkiewicz	Kamena Rally Team	Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR	4:08:47.7	Leader
2	11	400	Fernando Álvarez	Xavier Panseri	South Racing Cam-Am	Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR	4:14:41.9	+ 5:54.2
3	12	401	Miguel Toril	Rosa Romero Font	Escudería JMP Racing	Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR	4:27:05.7	+ 18:18.0
4	16	404	Amerigo Ventura	Erika Mingozzi	Quaddy Racing	Yamaha YXZ1000R	4:34:41.2	+ 25:53.9
5	20	403	Claude Fournier	Serge Gounon	Claude Fournier	Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR	4:52:07.6	+ 43:19.9
6	21	406	Ibrahim Almuhna	Obaid Ali Hassan	Almuhna Racers	Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR	4:59:38.1	+ 50:50.4
7	24	402	Alexander Toril	Pedro Gabril Lopez Chaves	Escudería JMP Racing	Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR	6:58:16.4	+ 2:49:28.9

RMPST

Finish	Class Finish	Number	Driver	Co-Driver	Team	Vehicle	Category	Class	Time	Margin
1	1	204	Michał Małuszyński	Julita Małuszyńska	Michał Małuszyński	Mini John Cooper Works Rally Plus	Ultimate	T1+	3:35:25.9	Leader
2	1	740	Maciej Giemza	Rafał Marton	Maciej Giemza	Polaris RZR Pro R	SSV	T4 NAT+	3:41:44.3	+ 6:18.4
3	2	203	Włodzimierz Grajek*	Michał Goleniewski	Grajek Rally Team	Toyota Hilux	Ultimate	T1+	3:46:45.2	+ 11:19.3
4	3	206	Miroslav Zapletal	Marek Sýkora	Offroadsport	Ford F-150	Ultimate	T1+	3:48:54.4	+ 13:28.5
5	4	205	Martin Kaczmarski	Armand Monleón	Overdrive Racing	Toyota Hilux Overdrive	Ultimate	T1+	3:49:19.0	+ 13:53.1
6	2	743	Mikuła Grzegorz	Priotr Szczygieł	Mikuła Grzegorz	Can-Am Maverick	SSV	T4 NAT	3:54:07.9	+ 18:42.0
7	3	759	Grzegorz Gąsiorowski	Katarzyna Szałęga	Grzegorz Gąsiorowski	Polaris RZR Pro R	SSV	T4 NAT+	3:56:09.3	+ 20:43.4
8	4	405	Tomasz Białkowski*	Dariusz Baśkiewicz	Kamena Rally Team	Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR	SSV	T4 NAT	3:56:28.7	+ 21:02.8
9	5	752	Witołd Pawlak	Radosław Bomba	Witołd Pawlak	Polaris RZR Pro R	SSV	T4 NAT+	4:00:28.5	+ 25:02.6
10	5	705	Marin Koloc	Sébastien Delaunay	Buggyra ZM Racing	Red-Lined REVO T1+	Ultimate	T1+	4:03:05.0	+ 27:39.1
11	6	760	Tomasz Sokołowski	Maksymilian Staniszewski	Tomasz Sokołowski	Can-Am Maverick X3 Turbo	SSV	T4 NAT	4:04:43.9	+ 29:18.0
12	7	748	Grzegorz Ludwicki	Rafał Jędrys	Grzegorz Ludwicki	Polaris RZR Pro R	SSV	T4 NAT+	4:05:07.6	+ 29:41.7
13	8	756	Mikołaj Krysik	Dominik Jazic	Mikołaj Krysik	Can-Am Maverick X3	SSV	T4 NAT	4:06:18.6	+ 30:52.7
14	6	211	Magdalena Zajac	Błażej Czekan	Proxcars TME Rally Team	Toyota Hilux	Ultimate	T1.1	4:08:28.7	+ 33:02.8
15	1	761	Bartosz Kaziród	Maciej Marton	NAC Rally Team	Can-Am Maverick X3	Challenger	T3.1	4:10:32.1	+ 35:06.2
16	9	746	Robert Mąsior	Damian Syty	AF Motorsport	Can-Am Maverick X3	SSV	T4 NAT	4:12:14.8	+ 36:48.9
17	10	767	Egidijus Malinovskis	Povilas Ignatavicius	Egidijus Malinovskis	Can-Am Maverick X3	SSV	T4 NAT	4:12:53.2	+ 37:27.3
18	1	731	Tomasz Kobyłecki	Jakub Moliter	Tomasz Kobyłecki	Hummer H3 EVO	TH	TH	4:15:55.5	+ 40:29.6
19	7	209	Tomasz Baranowski	Konrad Dudziński	Finarto Racing	Toyota Hilux	Ultimate	T1	4:19:44.9	+ 44:19.0
20	11	755	Mirosław Tokarczyk	Adam Binięda	AF Motorsport	Can-Am Maverick X3	SSV	T4 NAT	4:26:28.5	+ 51:02.6
21	8	703	Sam Heyvaert	Krzysztof Zolty	DS Units	Nissan Red-Lined	Ultimate	T1.1	4:29:59.8	+ 54:33.9
22	2	307	Mark Mustermann	Michael Zajc	Mark Mustermann	Can-Am Maverick X3	Challenger	T3.1	4:31:08.5	+ 55:42.6
23	12	766	Karolis Marcinkus	Albert Veliamovic	Albert Veliamovic	Can-Am Maverick X3	SSV	T4 NAT	4:36:58.0	+ 1:01:32.1
24	1	600	Martin Šoltys	Vlastimil Miksch, Tomáš Šikola	Buggyra ZM Racing	Tatra Buggyra Evo3	Truck	Truck	4:44:26.3	+ 1:09:00.4
25	9	704	Marek Janaszkiewicz	Agnieszka Janaszkiewicz	Hypnos	Mitsubishi L200	Ultimate	T1.1	4:49:28.6	+ 1:14:02.7
26	13	744	Tomasz Tomaszewicz	Piotr Jamroziak	Tomasz Tomaszewicz	Can-Am Maverick X3	SSV	T4 NAT	4:50:17.0	+ 1:14:51.1
27	3	306	Vic Flip	Gerhard Schmiedberger	Vic Flip	Can-Am Maverick X3	Challenger	T3.1	4:53:03.4	+ 1:17:37.5
28	14	764	Dzeralds Ramoska	Ronaldas Ramoska	Oba[D]vision	Can-Am Maverick X3	SSV	T4 NAT	4:54:09.6	1:18:43.7
29	15	742	Marek Kubiczek	Filip Gołka	Marek Kubiczek	Can-Am Maverick X3	SSV	T4 NAT	4:55:24.9	+ 1:19:59.0
30	1	721	Michał Lipski	Nikola Lipska	Michał Lipski	Dacia Duster	Stock	T2 NAT	4:56:35.7	+ 1:21:09.8
31	2	736	Łukasz Bzdyl	Mariusz Włosiński	Łukasz Bzdyl	Mitsubishi Pajero	TH	TH	4:58:53.2	+ 1:23:27.3
32	2	601	Karel Posledni	Filip Skrobanek, Jaroslav Kolar	Buggyra ZM Racing	Tatra Phoenix	Truck	Truck	4:59:25.8	+ 1:23:59.9
33	2	720	Grzegorz Szwagrzyk	Grzegorz Konczak	NAC Rally Team	Mitsubishi Pajero	Stock	T2.2	5:02:27.3	+ 1:27:01.4
34	3	603	Tomáš Vrátný	Bartłomiej Boba, Jaromir Martinec	Fesh Fesh	Tatra FF7	Truck	Truck	5:08:12.4	+ 1:32:46.5
35	3	732	Wojciech Koziński	Ludwik Wikowicz	Wojciech Koziński	Nissan Pathfinder	TH	TH	5:13:34.1	+ 1:38:08.2
36	16	762	Aivaras Kavaliauskas	Ernestas Česokas	BRO Racing	Can-Am Maverick X3	SSV	T4 NAT	5:13:43.3	+ 1:38:17.4
37	17	749	Paweł Pietranek	Michał Šwierczek	Paweł Pietranek	Polaris RZR Pro R	SSV	T4 NAT+	5:13:43.8	+ 1:38:17.9
38	4	735	Michał Horodeński	Arkadiusz Sałaciński	Toyota Team Classic	Toyota Land Cruiser HDJ80	TH	TH	5:19:11.6	+ 1:43:45.7
39	5	733	Piotr Brakowiecki	Tomasz Chmielewski	NAC Rally Team	Dacia Duster	TH	TH	5:25:06.4	+ 1:49:40.5
40	4	308	Richard Aczel	Wouter Rosegaard	Arcane Racing	Arcane T3	Challenger	T3.1	5:43:05.3	+ 2:07:39.4
41	3	724	Tomasz Piluch	Marcin Pawłowski	Tomasz Piluch	Mitsubishi Pajero	Stock	T2.1	5:56:19.2	+ 2:20:53.3
42	4	602	Michal Valtr	Marcin Pasek, Marek Hýl	Valtr Racing Team	IVECO PowerStar Torpedo	Truck	Truck	8:07:24.6	+ 4:31:58.7
43	10	701	Karel Trněný	Václav Pritzl	Workoutland ACCR Czech Team	Ford F-150 EVO	Ultimate	T1+	8:59:10.9	+ 5:23:45.0
44	18	753	Michalł Košciuszko	Artur Kordala	Polaris Polska Racing Team	Polaris RZR Pro R	SSV	T4 NAT+	10:59:33.2	+ 7:24:07.3
45	19	745	Wojciech Szulecki	Paweł Kuta	Wojciech Szulecki	Can-Am Maverick X3	SSV	T4 NAT	10:59:43.6	+ 7:24:17.7
46	20	741	Karol Lenkiewicz	Dominik Ragiel	Karol Lenkiewicz	Can-Am Maverick X3	SSV	T4 NAT	10:59:48.0	+ 7:24:22.1
47	21	757	Przemysław Matulka	Daniel Dymurski	AF Motorsport	Can-Am Maverick X3	SSV	T4 NAT	11:02:11.0	+ 7:26:45.1
48	6	737	Aleksandr Szandrowski	Wojciech Hencner	Aleksandr Szandrowski	Sam Offactory	TH	TH	11:03:26.4	+ 7:28:00.5
49	4	722	Mariusz Pietrzycki	Sławomir Cebulak	NAC Rally Team	Dacia Duster	Stock	T2.T	11:04:45.0	+ 7:29:19.1
50	22	751	Olgierd Rostowski	Klaudiusz Rostowski	Olgierd Rostowski	Can-Am Maverick X3	SSV	T4 NAT	11:06:47.9	+ 7:31:22.0
51	23	754	Damian Perzanowski	Inez Kieliba	Damian Perzanowski	Can-Am Maverick X3	SSV	T4 NAT	12:32:12.0	+ 8:56:46.1
DNF	DNF	702	Robert Kufel	Dominik Brzozowski	Robert Kufel	Ford Ranger	Ultimate	T1.2	DNF	N/A
DNF	DNF	723	Andrzej Kalitowicz	Ernest Górecki	AF Motorsport	Dacia Duster	Stock	T2.2	DNF	N/A
DNF	DNF	730	Jacek Sobońn	Kacper Jeneralski	Jacek Sobońn	Nissan Navara D40	TH	TH	DNF	N/A
DNF	DNF	734	Marcin Żukowski	Paweł Zamęcki	Marcin Żukowski	Nissan Navara D22	TH	TH	DNF	N/A
DNF	DNF	747	Marek Szcurek	Stanisław Wojtków	Marek Szcurek	Polaris RZR XP Turbo EPS	SSV	T4 NAT	DNF	N/A
DNF	DNF	750	Jakub Brzeziński	Szymon Marciniak	Proxcars TME Rally Team	Can-Am Maverick X3	SSV	T4 NAT	DNF	N/A
DNF	DNF	758	András Lukács	Zoltán Palotai	Speedy Motorsport	Yamaha YXZ1000R	SSV	T4 NAT	DNF	N/A
DNF	DNF	763	Tomas Mickus	Mykołas Paulavicius	BRO Racing	Can-Am Maverick X3	SSV	T4 NAT	DNF	N/A
DNF	DNF	765	Csucsu	Márk Mesterházi	Speedy Motorsport	Yamaha Quaddy XZ1-T	SSV	T4 NAT	DNF	N/A