August is the emptiest month in the calendar of the summer Lithuanian rally season. The first four events of LARČ, which passed extremely quickly, allowed a slightly longer break between Rokiškis and Elektrėnai rally. To tell the truth, after the events in Rokiškis, this break is more than necessary. Nevertheless, there will be some dust rised in Lithuania in August. This is ensured by the association “Kelmės ASK”, which organizes the fourth event of the mini-rally championship – Rally Kražiai. While many LARČ participants are still licking their wounds after Rokiškis, those who did not drive a few weeks ago will try this rally in the guest class.
Rokas Steponavičius, who disappeared from Rokiškis rally lists due to back problems, will try to compensate for the missed kilometers by coming to Kražiai. If the last time Dovydas Ketvirtis drove the Ford Fiesta N5 in Ukmergė, this time everything will be back to normal. Rokas will be driving, and Dovydas will be back in the pilot’s seat. With Nedas Radišauskas leading the LARČ5 standings after four stages, Rokas Steponavičius needs to win everything that is left to have a chance at the championship title. To do that, you need to be in top form, which Rokas and Dovydas will polish up at this start in Kražiai.
The guests from Poland and the winner of the Mini Rally Ukmergė – Mikolaj Kempa – will return to the Mini Rally competition. The guests, who are satisfied with the nice Lithuanian special stages, will use the Ford Fiesta N5 car of Darius Biesevičius, just like last time. The Pole, who felt very comfortable with the N5 technology at the Ukmergė Rally, will a new co-driver – Marcin Szeja, for whom it will be the fifth visit to Lithuania and the eleventh competition this year. Co-driver Sebastian Wach, who celebrated victory in Ukmergė with Mikolaj last time, will also be in Kražiai, but he will read the pace notes for the extremely young Polish talent.
The Kražiai Rally will take place on August 11 and 12. At 12:50 the participants of the mini-rally will start, followed by the representatives of the guest class, which includes Rokas with Dovydas and Mikolaj with Marcin. The rally will consist of 7 special stages around Kražiai with two service zones in between. The special stages will consist of 30.25 km, and the total distance of the rally will be 130 kilometers.
| Nr. | Driver | Co-driver | Car | Team | Class | |||
| 75. |  | Rokas Steponavičius | | Dovydas Ketvirtis |  | Ford Fiesta N5 | GSR Motorsport | Svečių |
| 76. |  | Mikołaj Kempa | | Marcin Szeja | | Ford Fiesta N5 | Mikołaj Kempa | Svečių |
All information – Rally Kražiai 2023