Sesks hopes to start in the stages of the Latvian championship after withdrawing from the “Alūksne” rally
Our titled rally crew Mārtiņš Sesks and Renārs Francis, who are competing with cars supported by the technology company “Tet” and the chipboard manufacturer “Cewood”, experienced an unpleasant withdrawal from the rally “Alūksne”. Despite a commanding lead in six of the eight stages, the crew was forced to retire in the seventh stage due to technical problems. A hidden rock, on which the car’s suspension failed, put an end to their hopes of winning this stage.
The race, which started on Friday evening with the dark stages, was successful for the crew of Seska and Francis, creating a significant advantage over the closest followers. They ended the first day with a lead of half a minute, but on Saturday, the longest day of the race, they continued to show a convincing performance, increasing the lead to 1 minute and 26 seconds after the sixth stage.
Technical quirks spill the unexpected
Unfortunately, technical problems in the seventh stage prevented the crew from reaching the finish line. “Of course, it’s not the outcome we hoped for, but there’s nothing to worry about,” Mārtiņš Sesks admitted after the withdrawal. “We covered valuable kilometers, enjoyed the snow and made the fans happy.” He added that this season we hope to compete in other stages of the Championship of the Republic of Latvia (LRČ).
The crew started with the “SRT Proto 02” car prepared by “Sports Racing Technologies”, equipped with “MRF Tires” tires. With this technique, they demonstrated both their superiority over several cars in the “Rally2” class, and also prepared for the upcoming start of the World Rally Championship (WRC) stage in Sweden, which will take place in February.
Ferret’s future plans and WRC ambitions
Despite the failure in “Alūksne”, Mārtiņš Sesks and Renārs Francis continue to move towards their goals. Sesks will compete in at least six rounds of the World Rally Championship this season, proving his ambitions and progress in the international arena. His career in rallying has developed rapidly, starting with participation in the World Junior Rally Championship and the runner-up title won in 2020, up to the second place won in the European Rally Championship in 2023.
Mārtiņš Sesks is also the grandson of the Latvian motor sportsman, the founder of the “Kurzeme” rally and the USSR Rally champion Mārtiņš Sesks, and the son of the rally driver and politician Uldas Sesks. His debut in the WRC Rally1 group took place in 2024 at the Polish Rally together with the “M-Sport Ford WRT” team. Although a technical breakdown in Alūksne prevented them from achieving the expected result, the crew continues to prepare for the next challenges, both at the level of the Latvian and world championships.
Results and other participants of the “Alūksne” rally
In the “Alūksne” rally, the Estonian crew Karls Martins Volvers/Annika Sona with the “Toyota GR Yaris Rally2” car became the winners. Latvian Jānis Vorobjovs together with Artūras Žeibe took the high fifth place in the Latvian Rally Cup. On the other hand, the Gulbene crew Kristers Cimdiņš/Renārs Šķenders won the LRČ6 group and the LRK7 competition, starting with the recently purchased “VAZ 2107” of Zinta Mezīš.
This rally opened the 2026 Latvian Rally Championship season and gathered a record number of participants, more than 90 crews. Also, the stages of the Estonian Rally Championship, the Latvian Rally Sprint Cup and the Latvian Historic Car Rally Cup took part in the rally.
