Rallye Breslau 2026 Final Results: Podiums, Surprises and the Road to Dakar

The Rallye Breslau 2026 is done. After six days of racing from 28 June to 3 July, the final classification is on the table, and it delivered exactly what this event is known for: honest, brutal cross country racing where a strong week can be decided in the last kilometre. For us at TimeOut Racing the headline is simple. Uwe Götzel and Christof Trautsch fought their way to fourth place in the SSV class, a real step up from where they sat mid rally.

If you followed our interim report through Leg 4, you saw Uwe and Christof holding a mid pack position under pressure. The back half of the rally is where they made the difference. Consistent stage times across Leg 5, no costly mistakes on the marathon sections, and a finishing time of 12 hours 17 minutes brought them home in P4, one minute fifty two behind the class leader. In a field this deep, that result is earned metre by metre.

The SSV class stayed fast and merciless

The SSV winners, Mitchel van den Brink and Nick van Drie, set a pace that the rest of the field simply could not match, closing out the week well clear at the front. Behind the leaders the class stretched across a huge time spread, which tells you everything about how unforgiving the terrain was this year. Plenty of crews that started strong lost hours to a single bad navigation call or a mechanical problem in the wrong place.

Photo Credit @ Redfox Racing

Nobody proves that better than Edward Ruszczyc and Krzysztof Kubis, the Red Fox Racing crew who finished twelfth in SSV after a week that threw everything at them. Their pace was never the problem. They opened the rally in eleventh overall out of 179 crews on the first special stage, ran inside the SSV top ten on the brutal night leg, and set one of the quickest SSV times of the whole field on the very last stage. What cost them a better overall result was one cruel moment. Early on a stage the tall grass hid a tree stump that was impossible to spot, they caught it, tore a wheel off and lost the entire stage. That single incident is why they sit twelfth rather than deep in the top ten. Breslau does not reward speed alone. It rewards the crews who get the car through all six days intact, and one hidden stump was enough to write their story. Red Fox Racing run their Taurus T3 Evo as part of their Way2Dakar project, aimed squarely at the Dakar, and you can follow the crew on Instagram and their YouTube channel.

Enduro: de Ruiter untouchable, Gerlach on the podium

In the Enduro class Berend de Ruiter was in a league of his own, leading from the front and never letting the gap close. The real fight played out behind him, and it is where one name stands out for our readers. Justin Gerlach rode his KTM to third place overall in Enduro, a genuine podium in one of the most competitive classes of the entire rally. His week was built on steady stage times rather than heroics, and that is precisely how you finish on the box at Breslau.

Not every strong rider got the ending they deserved. Matthew Gird was quick all week, quick enough to be running comfortably in the top half of a stacked Enduro field. Then the final special stage bit hard and cost him a maximum time, dropping him to thirtieth. It is a hard way to end a rally that he raced well, and it is a reminder that at Breslau you are never safe until you cross the last finish line. We expect to see him back stronger.

Trucks and the Extreme classes: where character shows

The Extreme classes are the soul of this event, the place where old iron and stubborn crews go to war with the terrain. In the Extreme Truck Big class the podium went to Guido Neubert, Silvio Lipke and Carmen Borkowetz, who wrestled their Mercedes Benz SK 2650 to a well deserved third place. Anyone who has watched a big truck pick its way through a marathon leg knows how much commitment that takes. Three days of dust, heat and physical work, and they still had the machine intact and moving at the finish.

Across the other categories the wins were spread wide. Adam Krysiak took the ATV class on his Polaris, Mindaugas Povilaitis and Slavomir Volkov led Car Open home in their Toyota Hilux, and Dan Upton and Neil Rogers claimed Car Limited in the Defender. In the Truck class the van Groningen crew stayed in front from start to finish, while Hardo Mere and Piotr Kujawski topped Extreme Car Open. It was a truly international finish, with crews from the Netherlands, Poland, Lithuania, Estonia, Germany, France and beyond all leaving their mark.

Why Breslau still matters on the Road to Dakar

Every year we come back to the same conclusion. The Rallye Breslau is the most honest preparation a rally raid crew can get in Europe. Marathon legs with no outside assistance, real navigation, real fatigue and a schedule that punishes any weak link in car, crew or planning. The results this year prove it again. The crews who finished high were not always the fastest on a single stage. They were the ones who managed risk, kept the machine healthy and stayed sharp on the roadbook when they were tired.

That is the exact mindset the Dakar Classic demands, and it is why we point our own customers toward events like this one. A strong Breslau is one of the clearest signals that a crew is ready for the bigger challenge ahead. Huge congratulations to every finisher, and a special word to Uwe and Christof for that fourth place. On to the next one.

FAQ

When did the Rallye Breslau 2026 take place?

The Rallye Breslau 2026 ran from 28 June to 3 July 2026 across six days of cross country racing, with the final classification issued on 3 July 2026.

How did TimeOut Racing finish at the Rallye Breslau 2026?

The TimeOut Racing crew Uwe Götzel and Christof Trautsch finished fourth in the SSV class with a total time of 12 hours 17 minutes, an improvement on their mid rally position.

Who won the Enduro class at the Rallye Breslau 2026?

Berend de Ruiter won the Enduro class, leading from the front for the whole rally. Justin Gerlach completed the podium in third place.

Why is the Rallye Breslau seen as Dakar preparation?

The Rallye Breslau uses marathon legs without outside assistance, demanding real navigation and endurance over six days. That combination of risk management, reliability and roadbook accuracy is the same skill set the Dakar Classic requires, which makes it one of the best European tests on the Road to Dakar.