Evans took over the rally lead on the penultimate stage of the day, after Hyundai’s Ott Tänak suffered a drive shaft failure. But the Welshman can’t afford to relax – teammate Kalle Rovanperä is now just 7.7 seconds behind.
Rovanperä posted back-to-back stage wins on the final two tests of the afternoon to strengthen his position. Meanwhile, Evans suffered a puncture on the day’s final stage – luckily right near the finish – which meant he only lost 3.6 seconds to Rovanperä’s benchmark time.
Tänak, once again, carried out repairs on his car before the final stage. However, the car was extremely difficult to handle, and he lost another 40 seconds to the leaders. Tänak ends the day third overall, now 55.4 seconds behind Evans.
Hyundai’s Thierry Neuville holds fourth place, 1.5 minutes behind the rally leader.
Toyota’s Takamoto Katsuta is fifth, with a gap of over three and a half minutes, while Toyota’s Sami Pajari sits sixth overall, just over four minutes off the lead.
On Saturday, six stages await in Kenya, totalling 146.5 kilometres. The rally concludes on Sunday.
Safari Rally Kenya standings after SS10/21:
| POS | Driver | Car | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Elfyn Evans | Toyota | 2:00:45.4 |
| 2. | Kalle Rovanperä | Toyota | +7.7 |
| 3. | Ott Tänak | Hyundai | +55.4 |
| 4. | Thierry Neuville | Hyundai | +1:31.4 |
| 5. | Takamoto Katsuta | Toyota | +3:26.4 |
| 6. | Sami Pajari | Toyota | +4:19.1 |
| 7. | Josh McErlean | Toyota | +5:35.4 |
| 8. | Kajto Kajetanowicz | Toyota | +5:53.8 |
| 9. | Gus Greensmith | Skoda | +6:04.0 |
| 10. | Jan Solans | Toyota | +6:34.1 |
Safari Rally Kenya, itinerary (CET):
Wednesday, 19 March 08:01 Shakedown: Sleeping Warrior SEZ (5.16 km) Thursday, 20 March 11:05 SS1: Super Special Kasarani (4.76 km) 14:43 SS2: Mzabibu 1 (8.27 km) Friday, 21 March 05:13 SS3: Camp Moran 1 (31.40 km) 06:51 SS4: Loldia 1 (19.11 km) 08:04 SS5: Kengen Geothermal 1 (13.18 km) 08:57 SS6: Kedong 1 (15.10 km) 09:52 Service (40 min) 11:30 SS7: Camp Moran 2 (31.40 km) 13:08 SS8: Loldia 2 (19.11 km) 14:21 SS9: Kengen Geothermal 2 (13.18 km) 15:14 SS10: Kedong 2 (15.10 km) Saturday, 22 March 06:35 SS11: Sleeping Warrior 1 (26.97 km) 07:35 SS12: Elmenteita 1 (17.31 km) 08:33 SS13: Soysambu 1 (28.97 km) 10:59 Service (40 min) 13:05 SS14: Sleeping Warrior 2 (26.97 km) 14:05 SS15: Elmenteita 2 (17.31 km) 15:03 SS16: Soysambu 2 (28.97 km) Sunday, 23 March 04:42 SS17: Mzabibu 2 (8.27 km) 05:53 SS18: Oserengoni 1 (18.33 km) 07:05 SS19: Hell's Gate 1 (10.53 km) 08:18 Service (15 min) 09:56 SS20: Oserengoni 2 (18.33 km) 12:15 SS21: Hell's Gate 2 (10.53 km) *Power Stage
