The ORLEN Rally Team have completed a trouble-free opening loop of Saturdays’s leg of Rally del Paraguay. After yesterday’s unfortunate mishap, Kajetan Kajetanowicz and Maciej Szczepaniak returned to competition in round ten of the 2025 World Rally Championship season.
The next leg of competition has begun in the first of this year’s two World Rally Championship rounds held in South America. Saturday’s part of Rally del Paraguay took the crews northwest from the event’s base in Encarnación. The characteristics of the stages have also changed. Today’s route, although still maintaining the unique brick-red surface, feature significantly more loose gravel and stones on the road.
After yesterday’s unfortunate mishap and hitting a rock in the middle of the road, pulled out by another rally car, Kajetanowicz and Szczepaniak returned to the competition today. Thanks to efficient work of the entire ORLEN Rally Team, the Polish duo can continue their Paraguayan challenge. Time loss after missing three special stages on Friday is significant but the ORLEN Rally Team crew do not give up, working their way back to the top ten in the WRC2 Challenger standings. During Saturday’s first loop Kajetan and Maciek set top-five stage times in their category, achieving second-fastest time on one test.
We are back on the road in Rally del Paraguay. Today’s special stages are softer, with fewer compressions – but the ones that are there are still very hard. Our car also felt this – a windshield cracked on one of them. This shows the toughness of this rally. Some crews did not complete one of the special stages, where those compressions were really severe. I am feeling good in the car. I think it was the right decision to return, even though we are no longer competing for points or high position in the standings. However, we are setting good stage times and that’s positive. I am trying to enjoy my driving and to meet the fans – there are so many of them here and they constantly show great support
– said Kajetan Kajetanowicz, the 2023 WRC2 Challenger champion.
Today’s second loop is shorter than the first one but only by 2.5 kilometres. Instead of four, the crews will complete three special stages, repeating the stages Carmen del Paraná (18.67 kms), Artigas (22.73 kms) and Cantera (13.74 kms). The ORLEN Rally Team crew will return to the service park at the end of the day, around midnight European time.
Starts of Kajetan Kajetanowicz are supported by the title partner of the ORLEN Rally Team – ORLEN S.A., as well as technical partner Delphi and ORLEN OIL
