Stern test awaits drivers at WRC Safari Rally as season rains begin
The Kenya WRC Safari Rally slated for March 28 - 31, 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.
In an effort to deal with potentially flooded roads, many of the cars are running snorkels, which allow the engine to breathe whilst reducing the risk of ingesting water.
Toyota team principal Jari-Matti Latvala admitted the event could provide a different – and sterner – test than in previous years. Predictably, given his team’s 100% success rate on the modern event, he’s excited to be back in Naivasha.
“The Safari Rally is an event we always look forward to,” he said.
“This year, it could bring a different challenge with the change of date: now it’s the rainy season in Kenya so there’s more risk of difficult conditions. When it rains there, the stages can get extremely slippery and it can be quite a challenge for the drivers to tackle.
“Patience is always very important, and especially if the weather gets difficult. Being the smartest can be the key, rather than being the fastest. All of our drivers have shown what it takes to do well there and we would really like to see another Toyota win. It’s difficult to make significant changes to the car for this one event, but we are introducing a general update for the suspension. It’s also great that we can fit snorkels to the cars, which will not only look quite cool but also help if there is more water on the road.”
Meanwhile, in the space of a day, Škoda driver Oliver Solberg will go from Swedish snow to Safari sunshine in his pursuit of consecutive maximum WRC2 points scores next week.
The 22-year-old won the category on his home round of the series last month and his focus is on a repeat performance on Safari Rally Kenya, which starts from Naivasha on Thursday (March 28). Any hopes Solberg had of acclimatising to the temperatures and conditions coming his way in Africa went south when winter returned at home.
“We had more snow,” he said. “It’s been a long time [with snow] at home now and just when we thought it was done, more has arrived – this is not the perfect warm-up for Safari! Going from here to the heat of Africa is so different and that variety of landscape and terrain is just what we need in the world championship.
“There’s definitely something very special about the Safari. I love this rally. It’s really a unique event in the championship – every stage can be like a different rally, the variety across the route is huge. The roads are amazing and the chance to drive through a place where the elephants are close – but not too close – is something very, very special.”
Solberg will test his Fabia RS Rally2 in Kenya this weekend, but he has enjoyed some gravel running since his history-making Rally Sweden win (he was the first Rally2 driver to occupy an end of day podium on Friday night in Umeå).
Next week will be the youngster’s fourth Safari start – he’s finished in the top 10 overall in Rally2 machinery for the last two years.
“Last year’s Safari was so enjoyable,” he said. “It’s good that Elliott [Edmondson, co-driver] and I have that experience. But this year could be a little bit different with the weather. Nobody really knows what’s coming, I think it’s just before the rainy season – will it rain? I think the one thing we can say is that it will be quite hot.
“The other thing we can say is that we’re going to have a lot of competition. There’s a really good number of cars in WRC2, which is great. For me, the priority is 100% on 25 points. To achieve that, we need a good, clean rally with a big focus on every stage.”
