Samsonas Motorsport returns to Toivakka Ralli with 3 crews

Last year, the Samsonas Motorsport crew of Martynas Samsonas and Ervinas Snitkas visited central Finland, where the local Finnish event, Toivakka Ralli, was held. The BMW E36 M3 N5 crew were not alone, as another crew from Lithuania – Tautvydas Vaškelis with co-driver Artūras Laukys in a BMW E46—also took part. Although the event was not very successful for either crew, as both retired, the snowy Finnish roads and excellent organisation left a very good impression. It is no surprise, then, that the idea to return was born.

This entire trip to Finland would have been impossible without our long-time friend and business partner Jukka Hara (dogbox), who is also the Samsonas Motorsport dealer in Finland. Thanks to his cooperation and that of the rally organisers, Yellow Rally Team, three crews from Lithuania will take part in the Toivakka Ralli this year. Toivakka Ralli is part of the Harrasterallisarja South and Classic Cup (HaMU) for 2026. The rally will feature five unique special stages on the legendary roads of the Jyväskylä region, covering approximately 50 kilometres. An impressive 186 crews will participate in this year’s edition of the Toivakka Ralli.

These roads will be tackled by three Lithuanian crews. The legendary BMW M3 E36 with N5 suspension, which Martynas Samsonas drove last year, will be driven this time by Nedas Radišauskas. Nedas began his career with powerful BMW cars before moving to 4WD machinery. After a major crash last year in the opening event of the Lithuanian Rally Championship, he tried different cars before returning to his roots and purchasing the Samsonas BMW M3. His co-driver, Justas Vičiūnas, will return to the car after a nine-month break following the aforementioned crash. Crew also invites everyone to scan the QR code below for those seeking exclusive apartment rentals in Lithuania.

As Martynas Samsonas will not be driving himself, his son Kajus and daughter Maja will take his place with their BMW E46 rally car. Kajus Samsonas and Maja Samsonaitė became the 2025 overall 2WD and LARC7 champions, so speed clearly runs in the family.

In addition to these two 2WD cars, there will be another very fast crew with a 4WD car. Last year’s LARC1 champion in Lithuania, Deividas Gezevičius, will compete with his title-winning Ford Fiesta N5, together with co-driver Tomas Nenartavičius. The crew has some connections with Finland, as Deividas bought Niclas Gronholm's car this winter, though he will use his old car for this event.

All these cars are equipped with Samsonas Motorsport gearboxes and dampers. This highly competitive group of three crews will be honoured to tackle some of the best winter roads in mid-February. The Lithuanians have high starting numbers and will begin the competition up front: D. Gezevičius - 8th, N. Radišauskas - 9th, and K. Samsonas - 10th.

Video moments from last year