Solberg setback sets up Ogier duel after grueling WRC Safari Rally Kenya Friday

Oliver Solberg will take a 1.0s lead into the weekend at WRC Safari Rally Kenya after Friday tested crews with everything from mud and rutted tracks to mechanical dramas and even wildlife encounters.

Solberg (pictured above) began the second day of the FIA World Rally Championship’s African classic with a comfortable 33-second advantage in his Toyota GR Yaris Rally1. But he saw the gap dramatically reduced as his teammate, nine-time and reigning WRC champ Sebastien Ogier, mounted an afternoon charge to close within a single second by the overnight halt.

Friday’s action was disrupted from the outset when extreme conditions forced the cancellation of the opening stage, a second pass through the mud-filled Camp Moran test, after deep rutting left sections inaccessible for medical and technical vehicles. Crews instead began the day on the Loldia 1 stage.

Solberg’s morning wasn’t drama free. The 24-year-old Swede overshot a right-hander into the bushes on that opening Loldia test, costing him around 10s, before settling back into a measured rhythm through the remainder of the three-stage loop.

Conditions evolved again during the afternoon as the drying surface exposed sharp rocks and deep ruts across the second pass of the stages.

Ogier capitalized on the changing conditions, setting the fastest time on the afternoon-opening Kedong 2 stage and two stages later on Loldia 2 to steadily chip away at Solberg’s advantage. The rally leader’s margin took a major hit on the stage in between, Geothermal 2, when he suffered a rear-right puncture, losing roughly 30s as he nursed his Toyota through the stage.

Sebastien Ogier sits just 1.0s behind rally leader Oliver Solberg, setting up an all-Toyota duel. Toyota Gazoo Racing photo

By the time crews reached the day-ending Mzabibu test, the gap between the pair had shrunk to a single second.

“I tried my best. It was really slippery again,” said Solberg. “We are back to zero now with Seb, so we will see what he does. I have had a fight with him before this year and I’m leading 1-0… So, we will go again tomorrow.”

Adding to the Toyota Gazoo racing domination at the top of the leaderboard, Elfyn Evans completed a 1-2-3 for the team in third place. He’s 20.5s behind Ogier after a day managing balance issues in his GR Yaris for the WRC points leader.

Sami Pajari delivered one of the standout performances of the day to make it an all-Toyota top four. The Finn recovered from a near-roll on the morning’s Loldia stage to win both Geothermal 1 and Kedong 1, before setting another fastest time on the closing Mzabibu test. He’s still 50.0s behind Evans, thanks in part to a 20-second penalty for checking out of midday service late.

Toyota looked set to occupy the top five places until misfortune struck Takamoto Katsuta on the afternoon opener. A double-front puncture forced the Japanese driver to nurse his car through the remaining stages without a spare tire, dropping him to seventh overall behind Hyundai drivers Thierry Neuville and Adrien Fourmaux.

Neuville stalled his i20 N Rally1 under braking on Loldia 1 and also had to repair a damaged radiator in the afternoon. The Belgian fought back to end the leg fifth overall, just 1.2s ahead of teammate Fourmaux in the battle for best of the rest behind the Toyota train.

Adrien Fourmaux is just 1.2s behind teammate Thierry Neuville in Hyundai’s battle for “best of the rest” behind the Toyota fleet. Red Bull Content Pool

Esapekka Lappi holds eighth in the third of the Hyundais after an eventful run that even included an unusual wildlife encounter. On Loldia 2 the Finn slowed to first gear to follow a family of giraffes crossing the road for around 300 yards before continuing, but later slid into a tree near the stage finish.

The punishing Kenyan terrain also took its toll on M-Sport Ford’s Rally1 crews. Josh McErlean retired his Puma on Kedong 2 after a heavy impact in a braking zone that burst a tire, damaged the sump guard and caused a terminal transmission oil leak.

His teammate, Jon Armstrong, also ran into trouble when a rear suspension arm broke on Loldia 2. The Irishman and co-driver Shane Byrne completed a roadside repair before nursing their Puma through the final stage to reach the overnight halt in 16th place, more than 27 minutes off the lead.

In WRC2, the second tier of international rallying, Robert Virves holds a 14.5s lead after a dramatic day that saw early leader Gus Greensmith slowed by a combination of punctures and mechanical issues.

The tough stage conditions quickly began to take their toll on the class contenders. Greensmith initially set the pace in his Toyota GR Yaris Rally2, but then battled a loss of engine power and a front-right tire deflation on the rock-strewn Kedong 1 test before further complications emerged during the afternoon loop. A persistent transmission issue made it difficult for Greensmith to engage gears cleanly, forcing him to adopt a more cautious approach to protect the car through the remaining stages.

Skoda Fabia RS driver Virves capitalized on Greensmith’s difficulties to seize control of the category. The Estonian climbed to the top of the WRC2 leaderboard, and ninth overall, on the afternoon repeat of Kedong after surviving a massive high-speed jump earlier in the stage.

Robert Virves put his Skoda Fabia RS into the WRC2 class lead after multiple issues for Gus Greensmith. McKlein/Getty Images

Saturday’s six stages, including two runs through the iconic Sleeping Warrior test, add up to 76.25 competitive miles of what could be the most challenging leg of the event. After heavy rain in the lead-up to the Safari, crews reported extreme levels of mud through the stages during the pre-event recce and didn’t expect conditions to improve significantly for the rally itself. With the battle for the overall lead so finely poised, expect the Kenyan stages to play a major role in the outcome.

WRC Safari Rally Kenya, positions after Friday/Leg One, SS10
1 Oliver Solberg/Elliott Edmondson (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) 1h33m50.2s
2 Sebastien Ogier/Vincent Landais (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) +1.0s
3 Elfyn Evans/Scott Martin (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) +20.5s
4 Sami Pajari/Marko Salminen (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) +1m10.5s
5 Thierry Neuville/Martijn Wydaeghe (Hyundai i20 N Rally1) +1m46.1s
6 Adrien Fourmaux/Alexandre Coria (Hyundai i20 N Rally1) +1m47.3s
7 Takamoto Katsuta/Aaron Johnston (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) +1m53.3s
8 Esapekka Lappi/Enni Malkonen (Hyundai i20 N Rally1) +2m53.2s
9 Robert Virves/Jakko Viilo (Skoda Fabia RS – WRC2 leader) +6m53.6s
10 Gus Greensmith/Jonas Andersson (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 – WRC2) +7m08.1s

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