Tundo scoops top African driver title
Carl Tundo and his co-driver Tim Jessop on their way to victory in their Mitsubishi Evo 10 around the beautiful backdrop of Ole Naishu stage of the 2021 Nanyuki Rally on October 9, 2021.
What you need to know:
- The FIA Rally Star programme aims to encourage the emergence of a new generation of drivers and to identify those with the greatest potential of making a professional career.
- The programme is funded by the FIA Innovation Fund which supports innovative and high-impact initiatives that generate lasting benefits for the FIA community.
- Meanwhile, Kenya’s Ravi Chana navigated Tanzania’s Manveer Birdi to the victory in the Guru Nanak Rally in Arusha over the weekend. The crew was in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo10.
Carl “Flash” Tundo and his navigator Tim Jessop are the 2021 African Rally Championship (ARC) winners after clinching victory in the Rwanda Mountain Gorilla Rally Sunday.
The Kenyan crew’s work was made easier after their closest rival, Guy Botteril, of South Africa was forced out on day one of the competition after his Toyota Etios retired due to mechanical failure.
There was a strong performance by other Kenyans with Karan Patel finishing second and McRae Kimathi came in third.
Tundo’s VW Polo was a mere 13 seconds ahead of Patel’s Ford Fiesta at the end of the 12 competitive stages of the penultimate round of the 2021 ARC Series. Kimathi, a FIA Rally Star driver, competed in a Ford Fiesta.
“We are over excited to have won our fourth consecutive ARC rally. We are celebrating at the highest level, having clinched the 2021 ARC title. It is a fantastic feeling. It is a great moment in our rallying career,’’ Jessop told Nation Sport from Kigali.
The crew has previously won the Safari Rally five times, the East African Safari Classic Rally once and also clinched the Kenya National Rally Championship titles five times.
In the ARC Series, the crew won the Equator Rally (Kenya), Tanzania Rally and Zambia Rally.
Having already clinched the overall title, the duo may chose not to feature in the final leg of the ARC Series that will be held in South Africa.
Patel has proven that he is among one of the quickest drivers on the continent by finishing second in Rwanda. He won his first Kenya National Rally Championship event by clinching victory in the KCB Voi Rally and this came after he had won the Arusha Rally.
“It is a great moment and I must say that Kenyans’ performance was excellent. I am very happy with my position. It has boosted my morale and I am looking forward to an even better performance in the remaining events,” said Patel from Kigali.
The sole ladies’ crew of Maxine Wahome and Linet Ayuko finished in a commendable sixth overall place in a Subaru Impreza.
The crew is also part of the FIA Rally Star, which also includes Hamza Anwar.
Unfortunately Hamza retired on day one due to mechanical problems with his Mitsubishi Lancer Evo10.
The FIA Rally Star programme aims to encourage the emergence of a new generation of drivers and to identify those with the greatest potential of making a professional career.
The programme is funded by the FIA Innovation Fund which supports innovative and high-impact initiatives that generate lasting benefits for the FIA community.
Meanwhile, Kenya’s Ravi Chana navigated Tanzania’s Manveer Birdi to the victory in the Guru Nanak Rally in Arusha over the weekend. The crew was in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo10.
