Dinaric Rally Completed: Finish Reached Without Brakes, Podium Places Secured

The five-day Dinaric Rally, stretching across Croatia’s rocky plains and stunning mountain landscapes, has come to an end. Both CFMOTO Thunder Racing Team riders not only crossed the finish line but also secured podium positions.

“In general, this rally was very tough – every day brought its own challenges and adventures. You have to respect the mountains, because mistakes here are very costly. We learned that on the first and fourth days, when I had two quite heavy crashes. On other days, I couldn’t avoid technical issues either. Today, for example, I had problems again – fuel was boiling, a brake disc cracked, and I ended up without brakes,” said Antanas Kanopkinas, revealing that he rode the remainder of the stage without brakes, pushing as much as possible to keep his third place.

“One of the sweetest finishes of my career. I overcame my Achilles heel, and I’m very happy about that,” added Kanopkinas, an experienced rider in such rallies, highlighting both the difficulty and importance of this achievement.

Despite many difficulties, Kanopkinas managed to secure third place among the 13 starting quad riders. His teammate, Adomas Gančierius, who returned to racing after a two-year break, took second place, with Poland’s Piotr Michalak finishing first.

“The last day of the rally was one of the easiest for me – I really enjoyed the first part, riding carefully, because I already had second place secured and didn’t want to damage the quad. The first hundred kilometers went by in a flash, while the second part after neutralization led through the mountains, where we had to ride very slowly over rocks. It was more of a survival section.

Overall, this rally was really strong, interesting, and complete. We got a bit of everything, maybe just not enough navigation challenges. The scenery was fantastic, everything beautiful. Coming back after a two-year break and finishing second – that’s a great achievement. And I managed to keep the quad in good condition too,” said Gančierius.

For the team, this rally served as preparation for the upcoming World Championship round in Portugal, which will begin in September.