Baldev Chager maintains slim lead heading into final day of East African Safari Classic Rally
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Reading Time: 3min | Fri. 12.12.25. | 21:59
The Kenyan overcame challenges in the first two stages on Friday to stand in position to win his second EASCR title
Kenyan driver Baldev Chager is 256.46 kilometers away from clinching his second East African Safari Classic Rally after holding onto his overnight lead in a gruelling day on Friday, 12 December.
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Coming in with a 14-minute lead over his closest chasers, Chager endured an intercom breakdown in his first stage to see his overall advantage reduced to only four minutes, 58.5 seconds, heading into the final day of the event on Saturday, 13 December.
The Kenyan, who won the rally in 2022, will now hope to stay clear of trouble and take his Porsche 911 to the top step at the Diani Leisure Beach and Golf Resort, following what will be a decisive three-stage run, starting with Mariwenyi to Makinon Road (109 km), followed by Kusasha (76 km), before the final test from Vigurungani to Mwachanda (71.46 km).
In the first stage CS19 on Friday, Chager saw his lead greatly reduced when his closest chasers Harry Hunt and Steve McPhee reminded everyone why they remain one of the most exciting pairings in the field.
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The British duo flew through the stage in their Porsche 911, stopping the clocks at 56:24.1 to take a hard-earned stage win, a result that paired with Chager’s communication breakdown, slashed his advantage at the top to under six minutes.
Close behind in second, Charlie Tuthill and Gordon Noble kept the pressure on, finishing just 16.3 seconds adrift, while Evgeny Kireev and PG Andersson completed a tightly packed top three.
If CS19 was about sustained pace, the second stage of the day CS20 turned into a tactical sprint, with Tuthill and Noble striking back to claim the stage win in 33:32.1.
Jourdan Serderidis and Grégoire Munster slotted into second, just 10.1 seconds behind, as Hunt and McPhee rounded out the podium in third.
The last stage of the day delivered a proper Safari Rally finale, and it was Hunt and McPhee who once again dug into Chager’s lead, as they set the bench mark to win and finish 17.0 seconds ahead of the Kenyan.
Rounding out the top three, Kireev and Andersson completed the stage in 1:05:33.2.
Speaking at the end of action, Chager said: “About 40 kilometers into the first stage, something happened to our intercom. The connection broke due to a wiring issue. We tried to fix it and even used the spare intercom and wiring, but in the process we missed a junction.
That was something that could have been prevented, and probably cost us about 40 seconds. By the time people helped us get the car back onto the road, it took a long time, almost an hour to be honest.
"In the second stage, we also had an issue with the gearbox. It was refusing to select second gear, which made that stage very difficult, as we were essentially ready to drive the whole stage in second.
In the final stage we decided to take it sensibly. It was very tricky, and we did not want to miss any junctions. Thankfully, we made it to the end. It’s been a long, difficult day, and I’m glad it’s over.”
He will hope for a better day on Saturday, even with Hunt promising to give his lead a good go.
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