The Kenyan round once again proved its difficulty on Friday afternoon, with Toyota’s arch-rival Hyundai suffering the consequences.
First, Esapekka Lappi dropped out of the competition due to a gearbox failure, and immediately on the next stage, Ott Tänak damaged his car.
Toyota’s Kalle Rovanperä, Elfyn Evans, and Takamoto Katsuta, on the other hand, made it through the day’s stages without any problems. Rovanperä set the fastest time on every special stage and extended his lead to a minute ahead of Evans and Katsuta.
“Overall, this was a really good day. We have to be satisfied when we are in a triple lead,” team principal Latvala exclaimed.
“There are always incidents in the Safari. We didn’t see many in the morning, but in the afternoon, the spirit of the Safari Rally came out. There were retirements, but fortunately, our cars survived, and our drivers drove consistently,” Latvala continued.
Rovanperä can afford to monitor the situation for Saturday’s special stages, but there’s still a fight for Evans and Katsuta. The Hyundai driver leading the championship, Thierry Neuville, is close behind the Toyota duo.
Neuville suffered from being the first starter on Friday and also had a tire puncture during the morning loop. On Saturday, the Belgian will start the stages from a better position.
“Neuville is close, and the pressure is on. Kalle can take it a bit easier now, but the gaps between Elfyn, Takamoto, and Neuville are small. There’s competition to think about for tomorrow,” Latvala anticipated.
“We just need to keep our patience. And especially if the weather is challenging, then we need to drive very carefully.”
