Karolis Raišys

Karolis Raišys
Raišys competing in the 2013 Rally Saulė 777
NationalityLithuanian
Born (1982-05-02) 2 May 1982
Previous series
2025–2026
2017–present
2021–2022
2010–2021		Dakar Classic
Rallye Monte-Carlo Historique
Lithuanian Street Race Championship
Lithuanian Rally Championship
Championship titles
2026
2013–2014
2014
2011
2008–2011, 2013
2007		Dakar Classic
Lithuanian Rally Class 7
Lithuanian Rally 2WD
Lithuanian Rally SG2000
Lithuanian Autoslalom RWD
Lithuanian Autoslalom SG2000
Statistics up to date as of 19 February 2026.

Karolis Raišys (born 2 May 1982) is a Lithuanian rally driver. He competes in the Lithuanian Rally Championship and classic rally events.

He has won four Lithuanian rally titles and the Dakar Classic in 2026.

Racing career

Raišys started racing in Lithuania's national autoslalom series. He won a championship every year from 2007 to 2011, claiming the SG2000 title in 2007 followed by four in a row in the rear-wheel drive category; he added a fifth RWD title in 2013.[1]

In 2010, he made his debut in the Lithuanian Rally Championship, driving an Opel Astra with Rytis Lukauskas as his co-driver and finishing second in SG2000 points. A year later, he recorded his first victory when he won Class S2000 at the Classic Rally Druskininkai; Raišys went on to win the 2011 SG2000 championship.[2]

He moved to the LRC's Class 7 for 2013, where he began racing a BMW M3 E36 alongside Vytautas Dusevičius. Raišys won the championship with two class victories.[2] 2014 saw him add another Class 7 title as well as the 2WD championship, this time with Mindaugas Kašalynas as his navigator.[3][2] During the 2014 season, he was also disqualified from the Talsi Rally for allegedly shooting and killing five chickens.[4]

Raišys dabbled in time trials in 2021 and 2022, finishing third among SGC4 drivers in Lithuania's Street Race Championship both years.[1]

Classic rally

Besides his usual rallying, Raišys also frequently tries out classic rally. He said in 2015 that "returning to motorsport's past reveals the very essence of rallying – to be an open, enthuastic, and real driver event."[5]

He initially competed in a Mini Cooper S, with which he won the Madona Rally in 2015.[5]

In 2017, Raišys' Flameris Racing was the first Lithuanian team to compete in the Rallye Monte-Carlo Historique.[6] He and co-driver Vytautas Černiauskas raced a 1965 MG MGB,[7] but a fuel pump failure prevented them from being classified despite finishing.[1]

For the 2019 Monte Carlo, he switched to a 1958 Jaguar XK150 FHC.[8] The Jaguar won its class in the 2019 and 2020 races, including placing fourth overall in the former.[9][1] He returned to the rally in 2023, finishing second in category with the XK150 followed by a third class victory in 2024.[10][11]

Raišys ran the Rally de Portugal Histórico in 2021 and 2023, racing a 1961 Jaguar Mark 2 that he procured from the Automuseum Vilnius.[12][13] He won his class in both years.[1]

Dakar

Raišys followed the Dakar Rally in 2024 as a journalist for 15min.[14][15]

As a brand ambassador for Land Rover and certified Land Rover Off-Road Driving Experience instructor,[14][16] he registered for the 2025 Dakar Classic with a 1978 Series III 109. It was based on the car driven by Maurice and Michel Calamel in the 1979 Paris–Dakar Rally.[14] Raišys considered the station wagon the oldest and slowest vehicle in the field, and it was categorised in H1.A ("H1" is for cars of a low average speed, while "A" refers to vehicles built before 1986).[17][18] Despite the car's performance and a power steering issue on the eighth stage, Raišys and navigator Ignas Daunoravičius finished third and won their class.[19][20]

While Raišys brought back the Land Rover for the 2026 Classic, he had Christophe Marques as his co-driver after Daunoravičius joined another team.[21] He and Marques had never worked together before, only meeting for the first time when they arrived in Saudi Arabia for the Dakar. Raišys won six stages and the overall.[22]

Career record

Dakar Classic

Year Vehicle Position Stage wins
2025 Land Rover 3rd 0
2026 1st 6

References

  1. ^ a b c d e "About Me". Karolis Raišys. Retrieved 19 February 2026.
  2. ^ a b c "Raišys Karolis". eWRC-results.com. Retrieved 19 February 2026.
  3. ^ "Metinius apdovanojimus išsidalijo Lietuvos ralio ir ralio sprinto čempionatų dalyviai". 15min (in Lithuanian). 6 December 2014. Retrieved 20 February 2026.
  4. ^ "Karoliui Raišiui „Talsi Rally" baigėsi neprasidėjęs – ekipažas pašalintas iš varžybų dėl neva numuštų penkių vištų". 15min (in Lithuanian). 17 May 2014. Retrieved 19 February 2026.
  5. ^ a b "Karolis Raišys Latvijoje pakartojo 1965-ųjų Monte Karlo ralio finalą". 15min (in Lithuanian). 6 October 2015. Retrieved 20 February 2026.
  6. ^ "First Lithuanian crew in Rallye Monte Carlo Historique". Karolis Raišys. Retrieved 19 February 2026.
  7. ^ "Istoriniame Monte Karlo ralyje Karolis Raišys Lietuvai gražins moralinę skolą" (in Lithuanian). TV3. 18 November 2016. Retrieved 19 February 2026.
  8. ^ "Karolis Raišys su įspūdingu „Jaguar" startuos istoriniame Monte Karlo ralyje". Lrytas.lt (in Lithuanian). 10 December 2018. Retrieved 19 February 2026.
  9. ^ "Karolis Raišys atėmė čempiono taurę iš „Seat": savo klasėje užėmė pirmąją vietą". 15min (in Lithuanian). 5 February 2020. Retrieved 20 February 2026.
  10. ^ "Raišys su „Jaguar MKII" grįžta į legendinį ralį: startuos su 208 numeriu" (in Lithuanian). Lithuanian National Radio and Television. 6 December 2023. Retrieved 20 February 2026.
  11. ^ "Monte Karlo ralyje finišavo trys lietuvių ekipažai: K.Raišys ir O.Meilūnas – pirmi klasėje". 15min (in Lithuanian). 7 February 2024. Retrieved 20 February 2026.
  12. ^ "Lenktynininkas Karolis Raišys startuoja istoriniame Portugalijos ralyje". 15min (in Lithuanian). 6 October 2021. Retrieved 20 February 2026.
  13. ^ "Karolis Raišys šešiasdešimtmečiu automobiliu išsiruošė į Portugalijos ralio trasas" (in Lithuanian). TV3. 2 October 2023. Retrieved 19 February 2026.
  14. ^ a b c "Karolis Raisys". Dakar Rally. Amaury Sport Organisation. Archived from the original on 24 March 2025. Retrieved 19 February 2026.
  15. ^ "Ypatinga misija Dakare: 15min bus vienintelė nepriklausoma Lietuvos žurnalistų komanda". 15min (in Lithuanian). 30 November 2023. Retrieved 19 February 2026.
  16. ^ "Prestižinių automobilių gamintojas lenktynininkui K.Raišiui suteikė sertifikuoto instruktoriaus statusą". 15min (in Lithuanian). 6 June 2023. Retrieved 20 February 2026.
  17. ^ "2025 Dakar Classic supplementary regulations" (PDF). Amaury Sport Organisation. Retrieved 19 February 2026.
  18. ^ "Bemiegės naktys, užsispyrimas ir noras neįmanoma paversti įmanoma: kaip Karolis Raišys spėjo į Dakaro ralį?". Land Rover (in Lithuanian). Retrieved 19 February 2026.
  19. ^ Fitzgerald, Greg (24 January 2025). "Land Rovers Race in Dakar Classic". RoverParts.com. Retrieved 19 February 2026.
  20. ^ Nguyen, Justin (22 January 2025). "2025 Dakar Classic: Classic "definitely not something for little boys," Carlos Santaolalla becomes first repeat champion". 131 Off-Road. Retrieved 20 February 2026.
  21. ^ "Dakaro stebuklą su Karoliu Raišiu sukūręs Ignas Daunoravičius sulaukė ypatingo kvietimo". 15min (in Lithuanian). 6 May 2025. Retrieved 19 February 2026.
  22. ^ Nguyen, Justin (21 January 2026). "2026 Dakar Classic: Karolis Raisys dominates in "solid piece of aluminum and metal"". 131 Off-Road. Retrieved 19 February 2026.
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