The morning loop of the third day of Safari Rally Kenya has come to an end. Sebastien Ogier would remain in the lead after the loop.
SS8, SOYSAMBU 1
Stage eight of Safari Rally Kenya would see Sebastien Ogier take yet another stage win. Ogier would set a time 7.6 seconds faster than Kalle Rovanperä to take the stage win. Esapekka Lappi finished third on the stage, 19.2 seconds slower than Rovanperä. Takamoto Katsuta set the third fastest time on the stage, 7.8 seconds slower than Lappi. Ott Tänak would round out the top five on the stage, finishing 0.3 seconds slower than Katsuta.
SS9, ELMENTEITA 1
Kalle Rovanperä (FIN) Jonne Halttunen (FIN) Of team TOYOTA GAZOO RACING WRT is seen during the World Rally Championship Kenya in Naivasha, Kenya on 23 June, 2023 // Jaanus Ree / Red Bull Content Pool
Stage nine would finally see somebody other than Sebastien Ogier take a stage win. As Kalle Rovanperä would take the win on stage nine of Safari Rally Kenya. With Rovanperä finishing 0.6 seconds faster than Sebastien Ogier to take the win. Elfyn Evans would finish with the third fastest time on the stage, 1.6 seconds slower than Ogier. Esapekka Lappi set the fourth fastest time on the stage, 0.9 seconds slower than Evans. Takamoto Katsuta would round out the top five on the stage, finishing 2.6 seconds slower than Lappi.
SS10, SLEEPING WARRIOR 1
The third and final stage of the third day’s morning loop would see Kalle Rovanperä take the stage win once again. Rovanperä set a time 3.5 seconds faster than Esapekka Lappi to take the stage win. Sebastien Ogier finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 4.2 seconds slower than Lappi. Elfyn Evans set the fourth fastest time on the stage, finishing 14.5 seconds slower than Ogier. Takamoto Katsuta would round out the top five on the stage, finishing 0.7 seconds slower than Evans.
Trouble For Evans
Elfyn Evans (GB) Scott Martin (GB) Of team TOYOTA GAZOO RACING WRT is seen during the World Rally Championship Kenya in Naivasha, Kenya on 23 June, 2023 // Jaanus Ree / Red Bull Content Pool
Elfyn Evans would experience a slight setback on SS8. This setback would be caused by a water crossing. Evans would hit a semi-deep water crossing just the wrong way, causing his Yaris to stall as a result. Evans would lose about 40 seconds to Esapekka Lappi because of the stall. Evans would fall to fourth overall and promote Lappi to third due to the time loss.
Safari Rally Kenya Day Two Afternoon Loop Recap