(14.06.2025) Krzysztof Hołowczyc is a true icon of Rally Poland. With 22 outings to his name, the Olsztyn-born driver holds multiple records in the history of the event. This year, he couldn’t resist the opportunity to return to the Masurian stages – albeit in a slightly different role.
In rallying, as in many sports, time, speed, and pushing limits matter – but so does safety. Protecting both competitors and spectators is a top priority for organisers of high-level motorsport events.
One key component of rally safety is a fleet of “function” or “organiser’s” vehicles. These cars cover the route shortly before each special stage begins. Among them is the FIA safety delegate, who drives through the stage 30 minutes prior to the start, ensuring it’s clear and ready for competition.
The final car on the route before the field is the “zero car” or a course-car – a fully prepared rally car that completes the stages in rally pace just before the competitors. Its role is to assess conditions in real time and report back to rally control. The ‘zero’ car is always driven by experienced professionals, capable of spotting anything that might affect the safe and fair running of the stage.
In the ORLEN OIL 81st Rally Poland, the ‘zero car’ is driven by none other than Krzysztof Hołowczyc, alongside co-driver Łukasz Kurzeja, in a Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 – the latest-generation car from Mladá Boleslav. This marks the sixth time Hołowczyc has performed this duty in Rally Poland. Yet his competitive legacy in the Polish round of the FIA ERC and WRC is even more remarkable.
A gravel–asphalt split
For Hołowczyc, Rally Poland is a home event – he hails from Olsztyn, the heart of the Masurian region. The 1997 European champion has entered the rally 22 times, starting back in 1987, before the event moved from Lower Silesia’s tarmac to Masuria’s gravel in 2005. He’s just six starts short of the all-time record held by Marek Ryndak.
Hołowczyc’s 22 appearances are evenly split: 11 on asphalt, 11 on gravel. Across these editions, he has become the undisputed leader in the number of special stage wins at Rally Poland – an impressive total of 76, which is 21 more than Robert Droogmans and 28 more than third-placed Patrick Snijers.
Breaking the foreign stronghold
Hołowczyc is also among the all-time leaders in Rally Poland victories. He has won the event three times – matching Kajetan Kajetanowicz, Robert Droogmans, and Antonio Zanini. Only Sobieslaw Zasada has more wins to his name (four).
His breakthrough win came in 1996, alongside co-driver Maciej Wisławski, when Rally Poland was still run on tarmac in Lower Silesia. Until then, no Polish driver had won the rally since Andrzej Jaroszewicz in 1976. Foreign stars had dominated for two decades – Spaniards, Belgians, French, Germans. That changed when ‘Hołek’, in a Toyota Celica 4WD Turbo, faced off against Dieter Depping. After a strong start, Hołowczyc came under heavy pressure from the German, but ultimately prevailed – winning by just 12 seconds, thanks in part to flawless work by the Stomil Olsztyn Mobil 1 mechanics.
Two years later, Hołowczyc and Wisławski returned with a vengeance. In a Subaru Impreza WRC, they dominated the 1998 edition, winning by a margin of over three minutes.
His third and final victory came in 2005 – the first Rally Poland run on Masurian gravel. Hołowczyc and Kurzeja won three of the 14 stages that year, fewer than rivals Oscar Svedlund (six) and Leszek Kuzaj (four), but consistency paid off. Driving car number seven, Hołowczyc took the lead at the end of leg one and never gave it up.
In addition to his three victories, he also finished on the podium three more times: in 1995, 1997, and 2007.
Points, pace, and persistence
Hołowczyc remains the oldest winner of Rally Poland – claiming the 2005 victory at the age of 43 years and 8 days. He also holds the record for most special stages led: his name topped the overall standings after 71 stages in total.
In 1999, co-driving with Jean-Marc Fortin, Hołowczyc won 15 of the 18 stages he started – an outstanding performance cut short only by an electrical failure on the 18th stage of the rally.
One of his most cherished memories came in 2009, when Rally Poland returned to the WRC calendar after a long absence. Behind the wheel of a Ford Focus RS WRC, Hołowczyc and Kurzeja finished sixth overall – beating established World Championship regulars including Sébastien Loeb and Daniel Elena, then five-time world champions. They also outpaced two other WRC crews.
That sixth-place finish earned Hołowczyc three WRC points – making him only the second Polish driver in history to score points in the World Rally Championship. The first was Maciej Stawowiak, who claimed a point for 10th place at the 1980 Rally Portugal in an FSO Polonez with co-driver Ryszard Żyszkowski.
