McRae Kimathi places third in WRC3 as action-packed Safari concludes

Kenyan FIA rally stars, McRae Kimathi, Hamza Anwar and Jeremiah Wahome blew hot and cold, with Kimathi the only one to finish, in third place in the class, as curtains came down on the World Rally Championship Safari Rally where the three lined up in WRC3.

Diego Dominguez climbed to second in the WRC3 championship standings with an assured drive to claim victory in the all-Ford Fiesta Rally3 category at the Safari.

So brutal was Safari’s punishing power that Dominguez was the only driver in the category to reach the finish without utilizing restart rules.

Ogier survives late scare to win Safari Rally Kenya

"I am thrilled to have finished and secured third place in the WRC3 category. This was one of the toughest rallies I have experienced, and I would like to thank our sponsors Safaricom and Kenya Airways for their support and belief in us.

We promised to deliver, and indeed we have done our best. This achievement motivates me to continue pushing my limits and striving for excellence in every rally as I now turn my focus to KNRC," he told local media after the race.

On Friday Anwar began the day 9.9sec down on overnight leader Dominguez in the all-Ford Fiesta Rally3 class but surged into the lead by midday when he went 42.9sec clear of his Paraguayan rival on the final stage of the morning loop.

It was a lead that Anwar, a Junior WRC regular, maintained through the opening two stages of the afternoon loop, but his luck unraveled on the second pass of Kedong as he limped through the flying finish after puncturing both his front tyres early in the stage.

His misfortune did not end there, however, with another puncture coming soon after and no more spares to rely on.

That propelled Canada's Jason Bailey into second spot, albeit 4min 40.7sec down on Dominguez, whilst 2022 Junior WRC competitor Kimathi moved into podium position a further 5min 32.8sec behind.

On Saturday, Dominguez was unrivalled as all other competitors in the all-Ford Fiesta Rally3 class required assistance to get back to the Naivasha service park.

Anwar's troubles from Friday afternoon continued into Saturday morning when the Kenyan hopeful came to an abrupt halt following a water splash on the day's first stage.

Next to falter was Bailey. After winning the opening stage of the day and sitting a comfortable second overall, the Canadian hit a compression and damaged his engine's oil sump, elevating Wahome into second at the end of the loop.

Further back in the field, there were also problems Kimathi, whose rally ended with a broken steering arm. Wahome was forced into retirement for mechanical reasons, leaving Dominguez to tackle the afternoon loop alone

Dominguez eager to avoid a repeat of his crash-induced retirement last year had an incident-free drive on Sunday for the win as Bailey savoured a top-two result giving the Canadian something to smile about after his crew worked hard to repair a damaged engine sump overnight ahead of Sunday’s drive.

He overcame a broken wheel in Sunday morning's final stage to head Kimathi who placed third.

Anwar and Wahome failed to restart after their cars sustained terminal damage in the Soysambu water splash on Saturday.

Additional reporting by WRC