Kalle Rovanpera opens the afternoon lap of the first stage of the Safari Rally as he closed the morning, that is, by winning the special. The two-time world champion set the best time on SS5, the Loldia 2 of 19.17 kilometres, confirming himself as the man to beat on this second day of competition.
Although Kalle won the race, his fourth special success in a row, he was still unable to distance himself by much from his rivals. Indeed, the only rival for the victory – at least until now, because anything can happen at the Safari, and at any time – Ott Tanak.
The Estonian driver became the first pursuer of the Toyota Gazoo Racing driver due to the retirement of Esapekka Lappi. The winner of the Rally Sweden was forced to stop at kilometer 9.8 of SS5 due to an impact (estimated at 2G) which forced him to retire.
This impact damaged the transmission of his Hyundai i20 N Rally1 and forced him to stop just beyond the test road, signaling the presence of the car to the drivers who arrived at that point after him.
What is certain is that Tanak has become Rovanpera's only rival. The gap between the two is 18″6 in favor of the 2-time reigning world champion.
Behind them the fight for the lowest step of the podium continues to take center stage, with Takamoto Katsuta climbing to third place but followed at a short distance by Elfyn Evans and Thierry Neuville who is gritting his teeth so as not to abandon the hopes of bringing home a noteworthy placing this weekend.
Katsuta is 1.8″ ahead of Evans, while Neuville – who continues to be forced to open today's practice as leader of the Drivers' Championship – is 8.7″ behind Toyota's Welshman.
Good performance for Adrien Fourmaux, fifth in the stage, 2″6 from Rovanpera's time and sixth overall in the general classification. Gregoire Munster also lost 27 seconds in this stage, but his seventh position in the general classification is not in doubt due to the large margin he has over his first pursuers.
Of note is the entry into the Top 10 of Jourdan Serderidis, at the wheel of the third, but private, Ford Puma Rally1 Hybrid. The Greek is already over 6 minutes from Rovanpera, but the gaps at Safari matter relatively in a race like this.
WRC 2024 – Safari Rally – Ranking after PS5
| Pos. | Pilot/navigator | Car | Time/detachment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rovanpera/Halttunen | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 | 53'49”8 |
| 2 | Tanak/Jarveoja | Hyundai i20 N Rally1 | +18″6 |
| 3 | Katsuta/Johnston | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 | +41″9 |
| 4 | Evans/Martin | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 | +43″7 |
| 5 | Neuville/Wydaeghe | Hyundai i20 N Rally1 | +52″4 |
| 6 | Fourmaux/Coria | Ford Puma Rally1 | +1'17″2 |
| 7 | Munster/Louka | Ford Puma Rally1 | +2'50″7 |
| 8 | Greensmith/Andersson | Skoda Fabia RS Rally2 | +4'17″6 |
| 9 | Sederidis/Miclotte | Ford Puma Rally1 | +6'08″2 |
| 10 | Ciamin/Roche | Hyundai i20 N Rally2 | +7'06″4 |
#WRC #Safari #Rally #PS5 #Lappi #crashes #retires
