Denis Krotov is one-for-one at the Hungarian Baja after winning on debut, even if by the narrowest of margins.
Benediktas Vanagas looked like the top driver as he won the Prologue and Stage 1, but his race was upended by a fire in his Toyota Hilux’s rear wheels while waiting in the neutralization zone during SS3. While the fire was put out and Vanagas managed to complete the race, he was limited to a disappointing ninth in Ultimate and 19th overall.
With Vanagas out of the picture, Krotov inherited the top spot. He had finished fourth overall and third in class in the Prologue, then strung together back-to-back seconds behind Vanagas and Włodzimierz Grajek. Krotov was only ten seconds back of Vanagas after Stage 1.
Although Grajek beat Krotov by a greater margin in Stage 2 of 1:43, Krotov’s second the day before while Grajek finished seventh made all the difference. Krotov won by just 14.5 seconds to earn the second triumph for the gas-powered Mini JCW Rally 3.0i after he won the 2024 Qatar International Baja.
“It was my first time at this race. I really enjoyed it, even though today was very tough,” said Krotov. “Three special stages of 130 kilometers each in great heat, and the air conditioning in the car did not work at 100 percent. In itself, the rally was not overly difficult, but the tracks were exciting and diverse.
“Overall, everything went very well, and I had a lot of fun. It is already our second victory with the Mini petrol version, after the Qatar Baja. Many thanks to the X-raid Team, my co-driver, and the organizers.”
Paul Spierings rounded out the podium as the Challenger winner, marking his second class race victory of 2025 after Rallye Breslau. Team co-owner Alexandre Pesci was last in class after having to race through dust for much of the day; he also received a five-minute penalty for losing his time card for SS2.
František Brutovský returned to the Hungarian Baja after suffering severe vertebra injuries in a rollover at the 2024 edition. Alas, he couldn’t achieve his vengeance on the race after his navigator Josef Radina had some personal issues; the team pondered continuing but decided against it. He finished 17th overall and eighth in class in the Prologue.
“Unfortunately, the Hungarian Baja has not been kind to us for the second year in a row: first injuries, now a withdrawal,” Brutovský commented. “But I believe that bad luck is behind us and the next races will bring us back.”
Vanagas’ Toyota Gazoo Racing associate Tomáš Ouředníček retired after a myriad of technical issues on his Hilux during SS3. The Sentinel system initially glitched out, which was his priority fix when he arrived at the service area until the team discovered the rear differential came loose and oil leaking. The gearbox also seized up and wouldn’t shift into neutral or reverse, knocking him out for the final Selective Section.
The race was also a chaotic one for the SSVs. Afonso Oliveira didn’t start after rolling during shakedown, while Yağız Birinci bowed out on the last day. Sean Haran survived to earn the most points of the class.
Marnix Leeuw, who used the race to help prepare for his Dakar Rally driving debut in 2026, and his father Marc competed in trucks. Marc’s GINAF struggled with oil pressure issues that kept him from keeping pace with his son’s IVECO.
Nándor Gergő Nagy won the Hungarian Cross-Country Rally Championship’s UP class, where runner-up Dorian Kovács claimed the inaugural leg for the new PowerRace Cup. PowerRace is a UP subcategory for new racers and offers power tools as prizes.
The Hungarian Baja was the sixth round of the 2025 FIA European Baja Cup. It was also supposed to be on the FIM Bajas calendar but bikes and quads were dropped in June due to declining participation.
FIA
Ultimate
| Finish | Overall | Number | Driver | Navigator | Team | Vehicle | Class | Total Time | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 201 | Denis Krotov | Oleg Uperenko | X-raid Mini JCW Team | Mini John Cooper Works Rally 3.0i | T1+ | 5:20:07.5 | Leader |
| 2 | 1 | 203 | Włodzimierz Grajek | Michał Goleniewski | Grajek Rally Team | Toyota Hilux | T1+ | 5:20:22.0 | + 14.5 |
| 3 | 10 | 205 | Pál Lónyai | Alexey Kuzmich | LP Racing | LPR Porsche Macan | T1.1 | 5:59:43.8 | + 39:36.3 |
| 4 | 12 | 208 | Magdalena Zajac | Błażej Czekan | Proxcars TME Rally Team | Toyota Hilux | T1.1 | 6:11:16.2 | + 51:08.7 |
| 5 | 13 | 204 | Vincent Thijs | Arjan van Tiel | Vincent Thijs | Toyota Hilux | T1+ | 6:18:22.4 | + 58:14.9 |
| 6 | 16 | 209 | Christof Danner | Herwig Rieger | Danner Racing Team | Puch G320 | T1.1 | 7:24:22.1 | + 2:04:14.6 |
| 7 | 17 | 200 | Miroslav Zapletal | Marek Sýkora | Offroadsport | Ford F-150 EVO | T1+ | 9:02:46.8 | + 3:42:39.3 |
| 8 | 18 | 206 | Tomáš Ouředníček | Petr Hauptmann | Toyota Gazoo Racing Czech | Toyota GR DKR Hilux | T1+ | 14:20:38.3 | + 9:00:30.8 |
| 9 | 19 | 202 | Benediktas Vanagas | Aisvydas Paliukėnas | Toyota Gazoo Racing Baltics | Toyota GR DKR Hilux | T1+ | 19:51:10.2 | + 14:31:02.7 |
| DNF | DNF | 207 | František Brutovský | Josef Radina | MING Racing Sports | Ford F-150 EVO | T1+ | DNF | N/A |
Challenger
| Finish | Overall | Number | Driver | Navigator | Team | Vehicle | Total Time | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | 303 | Paul Spierings | Mark Salomons | Rebellion Spierings | Taurus Evo Max | 5:22:35.1 | Leader |
| 2 | 5 | 301 | Csucsu | Márk Mesterházi | Speedy Motorsport | Taurus T3 Max | 5:34:38.2 | + 12:03.1 |
| 3 | 8 | 300 | Lőrinc Mészáros | Albert Horn | M1 Motorsport | G Rally OT3 | 5:48:00.6 | + 25:25.5 |
| 4 | 9 | 306 | Martin Benko | Jiri Kalát | Norwit Racing | Taurus T3 Max | 5:57:15.0 | + 34:39.9 |
| 5 | 14 | 304 | Alexandre Pesci | Alexandre Giroud | Rebellion Spierings | Taurus T3 Max | 6:22:01.5 | + 59:26.4 |
| DNF | DNF | 302 | Miklós Trébitsch | Sándor Trébitsch | Bedu Racing | Bedu Pro X3 | DNF | N/A |
| DNF | DNF | 305 | Bartłomiej Kotwica | Arkadiusz Jędrzejewski | Grupa PBI | Taurus T3 Max | DNF | N/A |
SSV
| Finish | Overall | Number | Driver | Navigator | Team | Vehicle | Class | Total Time | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | 404 | Hamed Al-Wahaibi | Ilka Minor | R-X Sport | Can-Am Maverick R | SSV1 | 5:23:54.6 | Leader |
| 2 | 6 | 403 | Balázs Molnár | Gabriella Molnár | M1 Motorsport | Can-Am Maverick R | SSV1 | 5:41:34.8 | + 17:40.2 |
| 3 | 7 | 405 | Juraj Varga | Radovan Schneider | Varga Motorsport Team | Polaris RZR Pro R | T4 | 5:44:17.1 | + 20:22.5 |
| 4 | 11 | 402 | Sean Haran | Martin Hales | Sean Haran | Polaris RZR Pro R | T4 | 6:08:52.0 | + 44:57.4 |
| DNF | DNF | 400 | Afonso Oliveira | Fábio Belo | Santag Racing | Polaris RZR Pro R | T4 | DNF | N/A |
| DNF | DNF | 401 | Yağız Birinci | Evangelos Sotirchos | Birinci Racing Performance | Can-Am Maverick X3 XRS Turbo | T4 | DNF | N/A |
Stock
| Finish | Overall | Number | Driver | Navigator | Team | Vehicle | Total Time | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 15 | 500 | Bartłomiej Wajzer | Ernest Gorecki | Bartłomiej Wajzer | Toyota Land Cruiser KDJ 155 | 7:20:59.4 | Leader |
MNASZ
| Class | Number | Driver | Navigator | Team | Vehicle | Total Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ultimate | 201 | Denis Krotov | Oleg Uperenko | X-raid Mini JCW Team | Mini John Cooper Works Rally 3.0i | 3:38:03.7 |
| Challenger | 303 | Paul Spierings | Mark Salomons | Rebellion Spierings | Taurus Evo Max | 3:45:49.5 |
| SSV | 404 | Hamed Al-Wahaibi | Ilka Minor | R-X Sport | Can-Am Maverick R | 3:47:02.8 |
| Truck | 800 | Marnix Leeuw | Menno Lambooy, Bert van Donkelaar | Leeuw Rallysport | IVECO PowerStar | 4:55:03.4 |
| TROB | N/A | No Finishers | N/A | N/A | N/A | DNF |
| T4NAT | 750 | Zoltán Garamvölgyi | Antal Takács | Garilla Racing | Garilla X3 Evo | 3:54:59.9 |
| TH | N/A | No Finishers | N/A | N/A | N/A | DNF |
| UP | 901 | Nándor Gergő Nagy | Kata Csányi | Garilla Racing | Polaris RZR Pro R | 4:02:12.9 |
Featured image credit: Pataky Péter
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