The second run of the Geothermal special stage proved fatal for the Estonian driver. There was a rock on Tänak’s driving line in a corner, which lifted the front of the Hyundai into the air. Subsequently, the vehicle crashed into a bank.
Tänak tried to continue, but the suspension of the right front wheel had failed. Tänak had to park his car on the side of the road.
This is the second consecutive WRC event where Tänak has had to retire. In the Rally Sweden, he made a driving error that knocked him out of the competition.
The Friday afternoon stages have been a huge disappointment for Hyundai. Esapekka Lappi retired on the first stage of the loop due to a transmission failure in his Hyundai.
With Hyundai’s troubles, Toyota has taken a triple lead in the competition. Kalle Rovanperä is leading ahead of his teammates Takamoto Katsuta and Elfyn Evans.
Rovanperä has been the fastest on every special stage of the day. On the Geothermal stage, he set the fastest time with a margin of 4.5 seconds.
“It was tricky. We heard that Ott was out and now I didn’t want to do anything crazy. The driving didn’t feel so good but it was clean,” said Rovanperä, who has a lead of 46.4 seconds.
The Hyundai driver leading the WRC, Thierry Neuville, is fourth in the race, a little over a minute behind Rovanperä.
One more special stage is scheduled for Friday in the Safari Rally. The competition ends on Sunday.
Below is a summary of the Friday morning events at the Safari Rally. The competition’s standings and itinerary are below the video.
Standings in the Kenya Safari Rally after SS6/19:
1. Kalle Rovanperä Toyota 1:00:38.4 2. Takamoto Katsuta Toyota +46.4 3. Elfyn Evans Toyota +51.2 4. Thierry Neuville Hyundai +1:02.9 5. Adrien Fourmaux Ford +1:27.0 6. Gregoire Munster Ford +3:00.4 7. Gus Greensmith Skoda +4:50.5 8. J. Serderidis Ford +6:58.3 9. K. Kajetanowicz Skoda +7:55.3 10. Nicolas Ciamin Hyundai +7:55.7
Safari Rally Itinerary (CET):
Wednesday, March 27th 08:01 Shakedown Loldia (5.40 km) Thursday, March 28th 12:05 SS1: Super Special Kasarani (4.84 km) Friday, March 29th 06:15 SS2: Loldia 1 (19.17 km) 07:33 SS3: Geothermal 1 (13.12 km) 08:26 SS4: Kedong 1 (31.50 km) 10:23 Service (40 min) 11:48 SS5: Loldia 2 (19.17 km) 13:06 SS6: Geothermal 2 (13.12 km) 13:59 SS7: Kedong 2 (31.50 km) Saturday, March 30th 06:01 SS8: Soysambu 1 (29.32 km) 07:05 SS9: Elmenteita 1 (15.08 km) 08:03 SS10: Sleeping Warrior 1 (36.08 km) 10:28 Service (40 min) 12:34 SS11: Soysambu 2 (29.32 km) 13:35 SS12: Elmenteita 2 (15.08 km) 14:33 SS13: Sleeping Warrior 2 (36.08 km) Sunday, March 31st 06:02 SS14: Malewa 1 (8.33 km) 06:52 SS15: Oserengoni 1 (18.33 km) 08:05 SS16: Hell's Gate 1 (10.53 km) 09:18 Service (15 min) 10:20 SS17: Malewa 2 (8.33 km) 11:10 SS18: Oserengoni 2 (18.33 km) 13:15 SS19: Hell's Gate 2 (10.53 km) *Power Stage
