WRC Safari Rally to open KNRC 2026 season
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Reading Time: 2min | Wed. 07.01.26. | 14:40
The federation's activities, however, get underway on Saturday, 31 January with the opening leg of the National Karting Championship series
Kenya National Rally Championship (KNRC) 2026 series will open with the World Rally Championship (WRC) Safari Rally as per the Kenya Motorsport Federation (KMSF) calendar published on Tuesday, 6 January.
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This is unlike other seasons, where the Safari Rally, scheduled for Thursday, 12 to Sunday, 15 March 2026, was the second or third leg of the national series. Eight legs are scheduled for the 2026 season.
The season will see Karan Patel, who clinched his first national title after winning the season-closing Guru Nanak Rally, finishing the season with 233 points, just ahead of Jasmeet Chana (230), chase back-to-back glory.
WRC Safari Rally also doubles as the opening leg of the Africa Rally Championship (ARC), where Kenyan drivers will look to wrestle the overall title from Ugandan driver Yasin Nasser and his co-driver Ali Katumba, who secured the overall title by a single point over Kenyan rival Samman Vohra after the final event in Tanzania last year.
For the first time since its return to the World series, Nairobi will not feature in the Safari Rally following a significant shift in the route where organisers have dropped the traditional Kasarani Super Special Stage, which has served as the ceremonial start of the rally since 2021.
The shakedown stage has been moved from Wednesday to Thursday morning, with the five-kilometre Nawisa test set to serve as the official shakedown ahead of competitive action.
The federation's activities, however, get underway on Saturday, 31 January, with the opening leg of the National Karting Championship series.
