Katsuta takes breakthrough WRC win on Safari Rally Kenya

Takamoto Katsuta and co-driver Aaron Johnston secured their first FIA World Rally Championship victory after four days of battling through the most brutal Safari Rally Kenya conditions in years.

In his 94th WRC start, Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 driver Katsuta became the first Japanese driver to earn a win at rallying’s top level since Kenjiro Shinozuka’s Mitsubishi triumphed at the Ivory Coast Rally in 1992. The result is especially poignant for Katsuta, coming at the same African event where he scored his first WRC podium back in 2021.

The foundations for Katsuata’s win were laid during a weekend of extreme attrition that took out much of the victory-chasing Rally1 field, including the early leaders. The decisive minutes came on Saturday morning in the notoriously demanding Sleeping Warrior stage and its subsequent road section.

Up to then, Toyota Gazoo Racing had commanded a 1-2-3 lockout of the leaderboard, but the Safari terrain soon exacted a heavy toll. Championship leader Elfyn Evans was the first to fall, retiring mid-stage with terminal rear-right suspension damage on his GR Yaris. Minutes later the rally was turned on its head on the liaison back to the Naivasha service park when rally leader Oliver Solberg succumbed to a clutch failure and his teammate, nine-time and reigning WRC champ Sebastien Ogier, was halted by an electrical problem.

Starting Sunday’s final leg with a 1m25.5s advantage, Katsuta resisted the temptation to chase stage wins. Instead, he carefully managed the rough terrain of two passes through the 11.32-mile Oserengoni and 6.51-mile Hell’s Gate stages to secure victory by 27.4s.

“I don't know what to say,” said Katsuta after completing the final stage. “We have had so many difficulties and moments. Aaron has worked very hard to work with me. The team always believed in me when I was failing all the time. I'm here because of them and Aaron.”

After 94 WRC starts, including five second-place finishes, an emotional Takamoto Katsuta finally made it stick on WRC Safari Rally Kenya. Toyota Gazoo Racing photo

Hyundai Motorsport’s Adrien Fourmaux delivered a composed drive to secure second overall and claim the 10th WRC podium of his career. It was a result that had looked unlikely as the Frenchman and his teammates battled severe overheating issues in their i20 N Rally1s across the weekend.

Despite suffering a high-speed tire failure on Saturday which caused significant bodywork damage and cost around five minutes, Sami Pajari in the fifth of Toyota’s factory Rally1 fleet safely negotiated the remaining stages to secure back-to-back podium finishes.

And making it two Finns in the top four, Hyundai’s Esapekka Lappi finished 1m41.2s behind Pajari after a difficult rally battling heavy understeer and several punctures.

While Katsuta managed his overall lead, Solberg, Ogier and Evans returned under WRC restart rules on Sunday and fought an intense battle for Super Sunday and Wolf Power Stage bonus points. Solberg responded strongly to Saturday’s disappointment, winning the rally-closing Power Stage by 2.8s from Ogier to claim the maximum final-leg haul.

Despite retiring from second overall on Saturday, Evans’ pace on Sunday and the bonus points he picked up means he retains the overall WRC drivers’ championship lead on 66 points, with Solberg eight behind.

Elfyn Evans restarted in his Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 for the final leg and grabbed enough bonus points to retain his WRC points lead. Toyota Gazoo Racing photo

In WRC2, the second tier of international rallying, Robert Virves delivered an impressive performance in the challenging conditions to secure class victory and an outstanding fifth place overall.

The Estonian guided his Skoda Fabia RS through one of the most punishing fixtures in recent WRC memory, battling through the Kenyan mud and ruts to claim his second career WRC2 win.

Virves’ victory was shaped during Saturday’s leg when early leader Gus Greensmith ran into trouble. The British driver had set the early pace in his Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 before slipping behind the Skoda man after a transmission issue. Having closed the gap back down to just 17.2s, a puncture for Greensmith handed Virves a 55.3s advantage heading into the final leg, which he carefully managed to seal victory by 30.3s.

Fabrizio Zaldivar secured third place to claim back-to-back Safari Rally Kenya podium finishes. The Paraguayan had to fend off a late challenge from Safari debutant and former WRC2 champ Andreas Mikkelsen while also overcoming a 10-second penalty.

Robert Virves avoided trouble to take his Skoda Fabia RS to a WRC2 class win on the Kenyan car-breaker. Red Bull Content Pool

The FIA World Rally Championhip switches to asphalt and the return of Croatia Rally for its fourth of 14 rounds next month, April 9-12. Based on the Adriatic coast, the event last ran in 2024, with Sebastien Ogier taking the win for Toyota. Is this the rally where the Frenchman puts his title defense back on track?

WRC Safari Rally Kenya, final positions after Sunday/Leg Three, SS20
1 Takamoto Katsuta/Aaron Johnston (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) 3h16m05.6s
2 Adrien Fourmaux/Alexandre Coria (Hyundai i20 N Rally1) +27.4s
3 Sami Pajari/Marko Salminen (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) +4m26.1s
4 Esapekka Lappi/Enni Malkonen (Hyundai i20 N Rally1) +6m07.3s
5 Robert Virves/Jakko Viilo (Skoda Fabia RS – WRC2 winner) +11m38.7s
6 Gus Greensmith/Jonas Andersson (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 – WRC2) +12m09.0s
7 Fabrizio Zaldivar/Marcelo der Ohannesian (Skoda Fabia RS – WRC2) +12m20.0s
8 Andreas Mikkelsen/Jorn Listerud (Skoda Fabia RS – WRC2) +12m30.7s
9 Diego Dominguez/Rogelio Penate (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 – WRC2) +13m28.4s
10 Oliver Solberg/Elliott Edmondson (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) +16m44.5s

WRC Drivers’ Championship after 3 of 14 rounds
1 Elfyn Evans 66 points
2 Oliver Solberg 58
3 Katsuta 55
4 Fourmaux 47 
5 Pajari 32
6 Sebastien Ogier 26

WRC Manufacturers’ Championship after 3 of 14 rounds
1 Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT 157 points   
2 Hyundai Word Rally Team 114 
3 Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT2 35
4  M-Sport Ford 23   

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