The tempo for the 2024 Easter weekend WRC Safari Rally is set with selected drivers getting a feel of the action before the kickstart of the main action with Shakedown at Loldia.
However no points are awarded at the shakedown, this only gives the drivers the adrenaline rush required to take on the tough safari rally route and performing well at this short stage which is at the 5.40km stage is a moral booster.
Sports Cabinet secretary Ababu Namwamba was in attendance at today’s shakedown as he indicated that all is set for the main event scheduled for this Friday.
President William Ruto will flag off the rally drivers at the KICC on Thursday as they head off the Kasarani for the special super stage competition.
The action officially starts on Friday with drivers heading to Special Stage Two Loldia (19.17km), followed by Geothermal (13.12km), a stage over rocky hills with sweeping corners.
The Rally cars will then zoom to the floor of the Rift Valley in Kedong which is (30.48km). These stages will be repeated twice for a total distance of 125.54km
This week’s Safari Rally Kenya (28 – 31 March) is shaping up to be one of the most challenging since the event’s return to the FIA World Rally Championship in 2021.
Heavy rain in the days leading to the recce has muddied the roads, with some of the crews struggling in some sections. Bringing the event forward in the calendar has returned the Safari to its classic March date, which aligns more closely with the rainy season in Kenya.
Reigning FIA World Rally Champion Kalle Rovanperä will look to eclipse a miserable Rally Sweden with a strong outing at Safari Rally.
The Finn has finished first and second in the past two editions of Safari Rally Kenya – a similar result next week would help make up for his 39th-place finish in the snow last month. Rovanperä’s round two effort went south when he damaged his Toyota GR Yaris Rally1’s radiator on the opening morning in Umeå. Now he’s looking forward to Naivasha and the unique challenge that is the Safari.
“It’s really exciting to go back to Kenya,” said the Finn. “It’s been quite a good rally for me and also for our team: we have got some amazing results there. The atmosphere is also great so I’m looking forward to it.
“It’s going to be interesting to go there at this time of the year, during the rainy season. We expect that it could be much muddier, and already in the previous years we have seen a bit of rain and it is always really tricky and slippery in those conditions.
“The biggest challenge will be to have reliable pace for the whole week, be consistent and stay out of trouble. Rally Sweden didn’t go as planned, so I’m really hungry to get a good result in Kenya.”
WRC Safari rally defending champion Sebastian Ogier is not participating in this year’s Safari and Toyota Gazoo racing’s hopes will rest on their world champion and 2022 Safari winner Kalle Rovanpera, Japanese hotshot Takamoto Katsuta and Elfyn Evans.
