Kalle leads, Tanak fights on, Hamza proudly flies Kenyan flag in Estonia

Ford’s mechanical gremlins that saw them play second fiddle to Toyota at last month’s WRC Safari Rally continued to bite in Estonia as home boy Ott Tanak proved just what might have been by sweeping six of the day’s eight stages of the Estonian round of the World Rally Championship despite carrying a self-imposed five-minute penalty on Friday.

And young Kenyan driver Hamza Anwar of M-Sport Ford Poland got off to a promising start in his Rally3 Fiesta, competing in this round with Kenyan-born American Alex Kihurani enlisted as his navigator.

In the Junior World Rally Championship category Friday evening, Anwar had powered to a podium position in third place overall at the seventh stage, six minutes, 59.1 seconds ahead of class leader, Frenchman Laurent Pellier with Spain’s Roberto Blach 5:12.6 ahead of the leader in second place.

In the main race, Tanak had started the rally proper with a five-minute time penalty for his Ford entry in this eighth round of the 2023 World Rally Championship.

Technical issues in shakedown gave the British team no choice but to replace the engine in Tanak’s Puma, a punishable offence when carried out between scrutineering and the first time control.

“I would say that the more I have to go through the day, the more it hurts,” Tanak reflected.

"Our chances for the championship were quite tight considering our performances this year and we were working hard for these next two rallies. This was a proper kick in the balls.”

The Estonian, who finished sixth in last month’s WRC Safari Rally, responded by winning six of Friday’s eight stages in Tartu with world champion Kalle Rovanpera of Toyota opening up a three-second overall lead on second-placed Belgian Thierry Neuville of Hyundai.

Another Hyundai driver, Finland’s Esepekka Lappi, who finished 12th in the Kenyan round, placed third, some 12.2 seconds behind the leader last night.

Rovanpera, second in Kenya last month, had a near-flawless drive yesterday, almost going wide a corner in the day’s final stage but emerging unscathed.

“Not such a bad day overall. I am a bit disappointed that I lost a bit of time going wide in one corner but it was not so bad. I tried to push a bit but in the first pass conditions it's not so easy. Overall, not a bad day," he said.

Neuville, who had thrown an early challenge, remains prime for a big fight in Saturday’s action.

“It has been positive. We are happy to be in the rhythm, that's the most important part for us. Tomorrow is another day and we should have a good road position. I am looking forward to the battle with the others," the Belgian said.

Tanak battled to stay positive with the huge penalty effectively having ruled him out in the grand scheme of things.

The day’s proceedings were even more painful considering that without his five-minute time penalty, the home boy would be leading the event by a massive 13 seconds!

“Obviously the positions haven't really changed much but if you are not fighting for the rally it's tricky. At the start of the day my mood hasn't been the best but I am slowly getting used to it and it's not so bad at the moment. The support [from the fans] is massive and that's why we keep pushing," he said.

Rally Estonia is the eighth round of the 2023 World Rally Championship coming after last month’s Safari Rally with the next round scheduled for Finland from August 3 to 8, followed by Greece’s Acropolis Rally from September 7 to 10.