Kajetanowicz puts on a show
The annual Barborka Rally lit up the streets of Warsaw last Saturday. Once again, it was a spectacular sight. Symtech Racing was one of the stars of the show, thanks to Kajetan Kajetanowicz who thrilled the crowds on the final special stage through the centre of the Polish capital.

Several top stars from championships all over Europe made the trip to Poland to compete on the Barborka Rally, taking advantage of special rules that allow more powerful cars to be used. Belgian team Symtech Racing was one of the outfits that had come up with something special for its driver Kajetan Kajetanowicz. In particular the engine and the transmission had been tweaked, with a sequential gearbox replacing the usual manual unit on his Group N Subaru Impreza.

After the first three stages, Kajto and his co-driver Jarek Baran held a brilliant second place behind Tomasz Kuchar, who was untouchable in his Peugeot 307 WRC. Nonetheless the Symtech crew were in front of a number of big names such as Luca Rossetti, Bryan Bouffier, Michal Solowow, Leszek Kuzaj and Jasper van den Heuvel. A puncture then interrupted Kajto's progress, costing about 15 seconds. He dropped to fourth place before tackling the seventh and final special stage through the streets of old Warsaw.

Kajto Kajetanowicz commented: "As it wasn't possible to regain third place, I decided to concentrate on putting on a good show, in order to thank my sponsors and all the fans!"

So the choice of part-worn tyres for the last stage was a deliberate one, allowing Kajetanowicz to slide the car at lurid angles and also do a few doughnuts. The crowd went wild : and the spectacle was also appreciated by the six million television viewers who watch the contest live on Poland's main TV channel.

Kajetanowicz concluded: "It was a great day and an awesome show! Once more the car was fantastic. The Modena sequential gearbox is a real joy to drive and makes the car feel even more fantastic. I'd like to thank the team for giving us another excellent machine, which has again allowed me to drive a perfect rally."

Symtech's Wim De Boeck added: "In the morning, Kajto showed his talent and speed by climbing up to second. In the afternoon, he simply put on a show for the fans. No doubt the videos will soon be up on the internet! This was possible because the rally didn't count for points, and its sole purpose is for everybody to enjoy themselves."

Kuchar finally won the rally while the spectacular series of doughnuts pulled by Kajetanowicz meant that he dropped to 24th place by the finish. But that hardly mattered. The show must always go on - and Kajetanowicz made certain of it!

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