Vaidotas Žala
Vaidotas Žala is a Lithuanian rally and rally-raid driver. Žala won the Lithuanian Rally Champion, winning the title in 2019 and 2020, both when driving for the Agrorodeo racing team with Škoda Fabia R5. In addition to participating in various classic rally events, Žala has been participating in the Dakar Rally since 2016, with his start in 2021 being his 6th consecutive start at the Rally-raid marathon. Žala is also the first Lithuanian to win a stage in the Dakar Rally. Žala finished first in the opening stage of 2020 Dakar Rally. Zala won the 2026 Dakar Rally in the trucks class in his second attempt in the category.
Championship Victories
Žala won the Lithuanian Rally Championship title in 2019 and 2020. Assisted by his co-driver Andris Mālnieks, Žala came first with his Škoda [Fabia R5] in LARČ 1 as well as 4WD classes.
Dakar Results
Žala has regularly participated in the Dakar Rally since his debut in 2016. Žala and his co-driver Saulius Jurgelėnas failed to finish in 2016 and 2017 due to mechanical issues with their Lithuanian-built prototype rally car based on the Seat platform. Žala's best result to date is an 11th-place finish in 2022. In 2020, Žala made history by winning the opening stage and thus becoming the first Lithuanian to win a Dakar Rally stage. In 2026, Zala won the trucks category.