ARUNAS GELAZNINKAS
(ltu) 1.88m / 82kgHobbies
Wakeboarding, snowboarding, cycling
Sponsors
Orion Leasing, Gera dovana, Rentway, Zigmas, Inter rao, Rough Travel, ITTC, DIA, Eco House, Moto Centras, Cardo, Geralda, Koloro
2020: 21st overall, 1st Original by Motul
2020: 30th
2019: 24th
Discover more about him
2020: Lithuanian Enduro & Cross-Country championship (1st)
2019: Tuareg Rally (1st), Baja Poland (3rd), Lithuanian Enduro & Cross-Country championship (1st)
2018: Balkan Offroad Rallye (1st), Merzouga Rally (57th), Baja Poland (3rd), Baltic Cross-Country championship (1st), Lithuanian Enduro & Cross-Country championship (1st)
Discover more about him
“It is important for me to come back and defend my crown”
Lithuanian is Dakar mad so even if most people are into the cars, Arunas Gelazninkas still has a good following in his home country. Having already finished twice in the bike class to become the most successful Lithuanian in the category, for 2021 he set himself the challenge of entering the Original by Motul class, what used to be known as the Malle Moto category for riders competing without assistance. It means that every evening when you arrive at the bivouac, instead of having something to eat and maybe a massage from the team physio while someone fixes your bike, you have to do your own servicing, put up your own tent up, go and get your own dinner… you get the picture. People often compare it to climbing Everest without oxygen or sailing around the world singlehanded -hard men only need apply. And much to his delight not only did Arunas finish he actually won his class. If you look at his results throughout the 2021 edition some of his success must be down to his almost metronomic regularity. He finished his first stage in 42nd position and his last in 21st and his ascent of the rankings is impressively linear. But you can no longer win Malle Moto just by being consistent. Every year the category becomes even more competitive, with a hard core of Original by Motul specialists turning out on an annual basis to try and take that coveted top spot. To achieve class victory on your first outing is quite an achievement.
“The Dakar is always hard but definitely a little bit harder in the Malle Moto class. The effort it demands is maybe 25 / 30 % more than if you have assistance so you have to be fit and focused. You also don’t want to have any problems. Fortunately, I only had one crash in the dunes and no technical issues with my bike -just daily maintenance, air filter and oil changes and then a big service on the rest day. Obviously, I can’t actually do any better than in 2021 but it was important for me to come back and defend my ‘crown’. It won’t be easy -there’s some serious contenders to fight off”
Vehicle
ORION DAKAR TEAM
HUSQVARNA 450 RALLY REPLICA
ORION DAKAR TEAM
- Mark : HUSQVARNA
- Model : 450 RALLY REPLICA
- Performance tuner : Arunas Gelazninkas
- Assistance : Original by Motul
- Class : M_R2_NO
Ranking 2022
All news of A. Gelazninkas
Original by Motul: Melot opens the way
In the Original by Motul category, Benjamin Melot picked up his second consecutive stage win among the unassisted bikers and will be opening the way at 9.00. With yesterday’s victory, he took third place on the provisional podium from rookie Charan Moore. In front of him, Milan Engel has a lead of almost one hour and is also a newcomer to the category, but not the Dakar,...
Gelažninkas leads the Original by Motul category
Arūnas Gelažninkas, who finished in 21st place and won the Original by Motul category last year, is brilliantly defending his title. He was the 33rd rider to start this morning, with a lead of 3’23 in the general rankings of his category over Engel Milan, who set out three places behind. South African Charan Moore is 3rd, ahead of Mario Patro, former category winner Emmanuel...
Follow us
Get exclusive information