While some motorsport disciplines traditionally gather spectators at racetracks, gymkhana is increasingly moving into urban environments. It was this format that the organizers chose for the second stage of the VOLGA regional league of the Yuka Drive Gymkhana Lite Fortis series, which took place in Ulyanovsk as part of the Youth Day celebrations.
For one day, the "Art-Ulyanovsk Right Bank" venue turned into a real automotive festival. An exhibition of rare cars, a car audio championship, arm wrestling, a musical program, and dozens of cars from different generations made the stage interesting not only for regular motorsport fans but also for those who found themselves there for the first time.
However, the main event was still the gymkhana competition — a discipline where the result is determined not by horsepower, but by the precision of car control. Pilots need to navigate a complex configuration with turns and technical elements, while any mistake or knocked-over obstacle instantly translates into penalty seconds.
That is precisely why surprises regularly happen in gymkhana. Here, a powerful car does not guarantee victory at all, and a debutant can put up a fight against recognized leaders.
The qualifying session already showed how tight the competition would be. The best time – 01:58.139 – was set by Igor Sakharov (Moscow) in a BMW E30.
Interestingly, the current season is Sakharov's first in gymkhana. At the same time, he is among the few pilots who decided to complete the full Yuka Drive Gymkhana season, combining the professional PRO series and the regional LITE leagues.
Kamil Khamidullin (Ufa) in a Nissan Silvia S13 finished qualifying in second place, losing to the leader by only 0.064 seconds. The reigning champion of last season's PRO and LITE series is also competing in all stages of the championship, so the battle between the two pilots seemed symbolic – both are having an extremely intense season.
Despite the strong lineup of participants, one of the main discoveries of the competition was Roman Levashov (Saransk).
This was his first start in Yuka Drive Gymkhana, and he competed in the car of his friend Sergei Ovchinnikov, who had prepared a new project for the current season and handed over his previous car to his friend. Despite his lack of experience, Levashov immediately managed to reach the semi-finals and finished his debut stage in fourth place.
Equally unexpected was the result of Pyotr Muntyanov (Samara). For the Nissan Laurel pilot, this was only his second start in gymkhana, yet he already managed to reach the stage final.
The main hero of the competition was Maxim Skornyakov (Sochi).
During the stage, his BMW E30 encountered technical problems, so the pilot had to conduct the decisive runs in Igor Sakharov's car. There was practically no time to get used to it, but Skornyakov quickly adapted to the new machine and managed to maintain a high pace.
In the final run, the Sochi pilot was faster than Pyotr Muntyanov – 01:56.197 against 02:00.940, securing victory in the second stage of the VOLGA regional league.
Third place went to Kamil Khamidullin, who also received the award in the "Best Livery of the Stage" category. The organizers noted the updated design of his Nissan Silvia S13, prepared for the 2026 season.
After two stages, the standings in the overall classification remain extremely tight.
Individual standings:
The final resolution of the season will take place on August 9 in Samara. It is there that the winner of the VOLGA regional league will be determined, who will receive a ticket to the final stage of the Yuka Drive Gymkhana PRO series.
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