Kalle Rovanpera emerged from Saturday’s 160km of WRC Safari Rally Kenya with a lead of over two minutes. Positions behind were up and down as fortunes fluctuated and the brutal African stages took their toll.
Straight after service it was back for the second loop and immediately there was yet more drama.
Stage 11, the first after the lunchtime service saw Neuville come to a stop at km 24. The Belgian got going again but stopped just 2.2km later and was forced to complete the stage in EV mode. The problem was fuel system related. He got the engine running after a bit of fiddling after the flying finish but dropped 2min 38 seconds to the leaders, losing second overall, plummeting to fifth.
Tanak was not without his problems either, as a window came loose and the car’s cabin filled with dust which cost nine seconds.
Fourmaux’s steady drive saw him move into third place, 45 seconds up on Evans.
The next stage (SS12) was more of the same for the championship leader except he dropped 7 min 12 seconds this time, and lost another minute in the final stage in a day from hell for the Hyundai team.
Evans won stage 12 in spite of a left front puncture, ending one second clear of Tanak.
Sleeping Warrior 2 saw Lappi crawling from km 13, his windscreen opaque after hitting two “large birds”. The feathers on the i20’s bonnet suggested two guinea fowls will become someone’s meal. Lappi lost over 10m in the stage as he frequently pulled over to let his fellow competitors through without hindrance.
Fourmaux picked up a slow puncture but the tyre exploded, shredding the Puma’s rear bodywork, and Evans had yet another puncture, finally stopping to change his left rear tyre which had ripped the Yaris’ left rear bodywork with four km of the stage remaining. Evans, in fourth saw the gap to Fourmaux stretch from 40 seconds to well over two minutes.
With a lead of 2min 17 seconds, Rovanpera could afford to take it easy, and he reported he’d had no hybrid power for the entire stage but he only dropped 8.6 seconds.
After winning all six stages on Friday, Saturday delivered five different winners of Saturday’s six stages. Katsuta took two, with one each for Evans, Rovanpera and Tanak.
With a lead of over three minutes, Gus Greensmith could affords to be cautious. Oliver Solberg quickly moved into second overall and what followed was a ding dong battle with Solberg taking four stage wins to the flu-ridden Greensmith’s two and a reduced lead of 1min 55 seconds.
