Kenyan driver Tejveer Rai crashes out of Safari Rally as Kedong stage claims Evans, Sordo
British driver Elfyn Evans powers his Toyota Yaris WRC with British co-driver Scott Martin during the SS2 stage of the 2021 Safari Rally Kenya near Kedong at Lake Naivasha, Kenya, on June 25, 2021.
What you need to know:
- Tej, as he is fondly known as, exited the event on the initial Kedong run which also claimed World Rally Championship stars Elfyn Evans (Toyota) and Dani Sordo (Hyundai).
- The driver has been airlifted to Nairobi for further check-up.
Kenyan driver Tejveer Rai has crashed out of WRC Safari Rally Kenya after his R5 VW Polo nose-dived on Friday morning’s Kedong (SS3) stage.
Tej, as he is fondly known as, exited the event on the initial Kedong run which also claimed World Rally Championship stars Elfyn Evans (Toyota) and Dani Sordo (Hyundai).
The driver has been airlifted to Nairobi for further check-up.
Tej is the current leader of the Kenya National Rally Championship ahead of his teammate Baldev Chager and younger sibling Onkar Rai.
Toyota's Elfyn Evans went out just 300 metres to the end of the volcanic ash soil stretch.
Navigated by Scott Martin, Evans hit a rock on the inside of a fast right bend thus shattering the front right wheel and suspension on his Yaris.
Evans’s car spun in the next corner and with the damage clear, he reversed the car off the road, his day over.
Spain’s Dani Sordo became the second WRC driver to exit at Kedong.
He was less than four kilometres from the finish when he oversteered sideways off the stage and ploughed through the vegetation before coming to rest in a ditch.
Sordo and co-driver Borja Rozada managed to get their Hyundai i20 back to the side of the road but sadly joined Evans in the list of big name casualties.
Meanwhile, Thierry Neuville led Safari Rally Kenya on Friday morning.
Belgium driver Thierry Neuville steers his Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC with Belgium co-driver Martijn Wydaeghe during the SS2 stage of the 2021 Safari Rally Kenya near Kedong at Lake Naivasha, Kenya, on June 25, 2021.
Neuville, driving a Hyundai i20, held a 5.1sec advantage over Kalle Rovanperä’s Toyota Yaris, but Kenya’s rugged roads showed they had lost none of their punishing power in the WRC’s 19-year absence. Championship leader Sébastien Ogier limped back to service after heavy time losses.
Neuville won the tight and twisty Chui Lodge and the blisteringly fast Kedong. Rovanperä spoiled the Belgian’s hopes of a clean sweep by topping the times in Oserian before the survivors returned for well-earned service in Naivasha.
Finnish driver Kalle Rovanpera steers his Toyota Yaris WRC with Finnish co-driver Jonne Halttunen during the SS2 stage of the 2021 Safari Rally Kenya near Kedong at Lake Naivasha, Kenya, on June 25, 2021.
French driver Sebastien Ogier steers his Toyota Yaris WRC with French co-driver Julien Ingrassia during the SS3 stage of the 2021 Safari Rally Kenya near Kedong at Lake Naivasha, Kenya, on June 25, 2021.
Additional reporting by WRC
