2026-07-17
Palanga Crowns the Fastest A.R.S.A. Group Drag Race Competitors as Oksana Pikul Takes to the Strip
On Thursday in Palanga, the winners of the A.R.S.A. Group Drag Race were crowned. Although the organisers had to overcome several unexpected challenges throughout the day, all scheduled runs were completed, with the finals culminating in one of the most spectacular finishes seen in the event over the past decade.
This year's competition featured five classes: Daily, Stock, Street, Ultra Street and Unlimited. The starting line welcomed an impressive variety of machinery, ranging from everyday road cars to more than 1,000-horsepower monsters, including the Tesla Model S Plaid, Audi R8, Nissan GT-R, BMW M5 and Chevrolet Camaro.
One of the crowd's favourite match-ups featured well-known singer Oksana Pikul, competing in a Ferrari Portofino, against her friend Dovilė Jusienė, who took to the strip in a Mercedes-Benz G-Class provided by ECR. This time, Jusienė claimed the victory, but both participants agreed that the result itself was secondary to the opportunity to experience the thrill of drag racing in a safe, controlled environment.
"This year we introduced a new competition management system. Not everything went perfectly – we experienced a few technical issues, and the schedule was delayed due to an incident on the main circuit. However, the entire team put in an enormous effort to ensure all the final races were completed before sunset. In the end, spectators witnessed one of the finest finals we've had in the last decade," said event organiser Aivaras Rudzis.
The trophies established by the Lithuanian Police were presented to the winners by Vytautas Grašys, Head of the Public Order Bureau of the Lithuanian Police Department, who also attended the final races. Grašys once again reminded competitors and spectators, on behalf of the Lithuanian Police, that speed belongs on the race track, not on public roads.
"The new format has also shown us where we can continue to improve, but we already see enormous potential in it. I'm convinced that next year we'll be able to offer more race runs, welcome more competitors and deliver an even more spectacular event," added Rudzis.
In the Daily class, Rokas Ramanauskas claimed victory in the legendary Audi UrS4. Jevgenij Kopaniev finished second in a Chevrolet Camaro, while Gustas Vismanas secured third place in an Audi S5.
The Stock class was won by Marius Jocius in a BMW M4, ahead of Tomas Jocius in an Opel Calibra and Marius Tručilauskas in a Mercedes-Benz CLS550.
Klaudijus Kvietkauskas took victory in the Street class with an Audi A4 B6. Erikas Čagaruk finished second in a BMW 340, while Tomas Poliakas claimed third in a BMW M5.
In the Ultra Street category, Tomas Vilkas triumphed in a BMW M5, ahead of Paulius Valentėlis in an Audi RS7 Performance and Darius Vadapolas in an Audi S8.
The Unlimited class victory went to Darius Norkus, whose unexpected diesel-powered BMW 118d project crossed the finish line first. Saulius Petrošius finished second in a Nissan GT-R, while Irmantas Burinskas completed the podium in an Audi R8.
Photos: Vytautas Pilkauskas.