On a turbulent Saturday at the Safari Rally Kenya, Elfyn Evans edged closer to extending his lead in the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC). As the day wrapped up, he held a sizable lead of 1 minute and 57.4 seconds, navigating through the day’s chaotic trials with impressive poise. The legendary African endurance challenge lived up to its reputation, offering everything from dusty terrains to treacherous mud baths. Amidst the turmoil, Evans found a groove that kept him mostly ahead.
Saturday commenced with Evans sporting a modest 7.7-second lead. He soon made his intentions clear during the Sleeping Warrior stage, despite a hiccup with his rear tire near the end of the 26.97-kilometer stretch. By the time he finished, he had widened his lead by 8.2 seconds over his Toyota GAZOO Racing teammate, Kalle Rovanperä.
Things quickly unraveled for Rovanperä. A front-right tire hiccup near the end of the Elmenteita stage cost him 21.1 seconds. Things went further south at Soysambu with a front-left puncture, knocking him back by 55.5 seconds. By midday, the gap to Evans had stretched to a daunting 1 minute and 32.5 seconds.
Then came the rain, adding another layer of challenge to the afternoon stages. Rovanperä managed to recuperate 11.7 seconds from Evans at a rain-soaked second run on Sleeping Warrior. However, a misadventure with the rear suspension forced him to adopt a more cautious approach, plummeting him to fifth place, overtaken by Ott Tänak, Thierry Neuville, and Takamoto Katsuta.
Evans crossed into Kenya with a 28-point lead in the championship race and is now tantalizingly close to a first Safari Rally win. If he can keep his Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 unharmed on Sunday, he stands to solidify his title standings. Still, a brush with misfortune in the final stage, causing front-right damage, serves as a stark reminder of the rally’s unpredictable nature.
The rally was not bereft of further drama. Tänak, holding second, faced challenges of his own, dealing with a deflated tire early and later struggling with a fogged-up windshield on the Hyundai i20 N Rally1. Despite these setbacks, he maintains a solid 2-minute 36-second buffer over Neuville as they head into Sunday’s conclusion.
Neuville’s journey was fraught with challenges: two tire punctures, windshield fog, and a misfiring engine. Nonetheless, he gained a position in the final test as Katsuta stopped to change a wheel, his third puncture of the day.
Despite illness, Katsuta’s performance was commendable, securing two stage wins. Meanwhile, Sami Pajari brought his Toyota home in sixth, isolated by a 54.4-second gap from Rovanperä and a cushion of over four minutes from Grégoire Munster in a Ford Puma Rally1. Munster climbed from 11th position, snatching a stage win on SS15.
In WRC2, Gus Greensmith steered his Škoda Fabia RS to the lead, overtaking Jan Solans in the Sunday finale, with only 5.8 seconds separating them. With nearly 66 km on five stages ahead, the contest remains tight.
India’s Naveen Pulligilla led comfortably in the WRC3 class with his Ford Fiesta Rally3, cruising ahead of Kenyan Nikhil Sachania, also in a Fiesta, as the day drew to a close.
