On 9–11 July, Ukmergė will once again become the centre of Lithuanian rallying and motorsport. For the second year in a row, the “Jusema Rally Ukmergė” competition will be held here, returning to Ukmergė not only improved, with an even broader programme, but also with a new status.
The “Jusema Rally Ukmergė” organising team stated last year that this competition is not intended to remain merely local. The team, which has extensive experience in international competitions, has from the very beginning worked to make Ukmergė visible as a rally city not only in Lithuania but also worldwide. The professional organisation of the 2025 competition laid a solid foundation for further development, and this year the results of that work will already be visible. “Jusema Rally Ukmergė” has become a candidate event of the “FIA European Rally Trophy”, with the aim of becoming a fully-fledged part of this international rally series next year. Even more guests are coming to Ukmergė – 14 crews from Latvia, Poland, Ukraine, Sweden, the Czech Republic, the United States and a WRC2 star from France. The geography has also expanded – the rally route now includes not only Ukmergė, but also the Molėtai district.
With the start order for “Jusema Rally Ukmergė” now announced, championship leaders Vaidotas Žala and Ugnius Vainevičius will start first among the 60 crews. This year, the Lithuanian rally champions have no time to relax – in an identical “Škoda Fabia RS Rally2”, Deividas Gezevičius and Evaldas Kvederis are constantly breathing down their necks. These two crews have often finished special stages in the same second this year, so the next chapter of their impressive duel awaits them in Ukmergė. One of the organisers of this rally, the GSR Motorsport crew of Rokas Steponavičius and Dovydas Ketvirtis, driving the older Škoda Fabia Rally2 Evo, is also showing a pace very close to the aforementioned leaders, while Justas Tamašauskas and Algirdas Pranckūnas, starting with number 4, are not far behind either. However, this crew and Giedrius Firantas, starting with number 7, will have to work hard in the garages before the competition in Ukmergė, because their Hyundai i20 VRT and Škoda Fabia R5 cars suffered minor accidents at the rally held in Tauragė last weekend. Meanwhile, Vytautas Švedas, starting with number 6, was searching for speed in tests ahead of Ukmergė with the help of World Rally Championship driver Martinš Sesks. Speaking of the World Rally Championship, Arthur Pelamourgues, a rising French rally star competing in the WRC2 classification, will start with number 8 in his Hyundai i20 N Rally2, which the Frenchman will have to rebuild in the Jusema garages after an incident at the European Rally Championship in Rome last weekend.
On Friday and Saturday, the Jusema Rally Ukmergė special stages will be inspected by competition officials in Dacia cars, and the stages themselves will demand maximum concentration from the competitors. This year, the organisers have refined the format – on Friday, shorter special stages will await. Although the stages on the first day of the rally are short, each has its own character. The rally will open with an extremely narrow special stage completely submerged in forest, followed by a considerable asphalt section, which is not common in Lithuania. For Saturday, the second day of the rally, the organisers have prepared much longer special stages, so it will be a test of not only speed but also endurance for the crews. There will be everything – narrow corners in forests and wider, high-speed sections in more open areas, as well as numerous jumps. The crews will tackle stages of 14, 15 and even 18 kilometres, and the competition will be crowned by the legendary, winding, densely forested 16‑kilometre section along the Šventoji River, worthy of “powerstage” status, for which additional points are awarded. In total, the participants will have to complete 15 special stages, covering 134 competitive kilometres over two days.
There will be plenty of activities during the competition weekend not only for the crews, but also for the event’s guests. A service area will be set up in the centre of Ukmergė from Thursday evening, and an impressive free concert programme awaits on the following days. On Friday, 10 July, Aleksandras Makejevas will perform in Ukmergė Castle Park from 8.30 p.m., and on Saturday, 11 July, after the solemn “Jusema Rally Ukmergė” award ceremony, G&G Sindikatos will perform there. Also on Saturday, a trampoline park will be open in Castle Park, event merchandise will be available for purchase, and food and beverage vendors will serve the audience. Tickets can be purchased at the Ukmergė Tourism and Entrepreneurship Centre, online, and, as usual, on the days of the event at the special stages. Tickets cost 15 EUR. The event is free for children under 12 years of age.
