Carl Tundo scents victory in Safari Rally

By Feverpitch Team

Two-times Kenya Champion Carl ‘Flash’ Tundo maintained his dogged campaign in search of rare hat-trick when he outran the entire field on Leg One B around Isinya and Kajiado.

The Lanet-based wheat farmer drove like a possessed man, claiming all the five stages at stake in a day full of drama and anticipation. On- song Tundo appeared to have mastered the conditions when he opened an unassailable 5.42-minute lead over second-placed reigning ARC champion Jamie Whyte of Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwean Conrad Rauntenbach looked set to dismantle the Kenyan brigade during Friday’s Jamhuri Park spectator stage after he went to bed with a three-second lead.

Carl Tundo during the Safari Rally near Kajiado, on Saturday. Photos: Martin Mukangu, Samuel Nyakondo/Standard

But Rautenbach, who is leading the FIA African Rally Championship by 75 points, had to contend with playing second fiddle to Tundo who topped Day Two proceedings with three stages to spare.

Rautenbach’s Green Fuel Ford Fiesta S2000 was the talk of town after Friday’s sctruneering but fears that the Zimbabwean would clear the ground with all and sundry evaporated soon enough when Tundo set the quickest time on CS2.

"We had a puncture. The stages are very rough and not good for our car. We are trying not to destroy our car on these bad roads. We can’t attack. Our car is already falling apart. Now I just want to try and get to the finish," said the Zimbabwean.

Rautenbach trailed Tundo by 41 seconds after CS2 but a puncture on CS4 (Kamukuru Road) dipped him to seventh overall place as cars headed to the overnight Perc Ferme at Isinya.

Many prominent drivers met their Waterloo in rolling hills around Il Bissel, 94km south of Nairobi along Namanga Road where the Safari lived up to its reputation as the toughest test for man and machine.

The going was really tough for the Horsey brothers. Alex Horsey suffered two punctures on CS4, while Peter hit a culvert and retired upon damaging the drive shaft.

"This is a long and hard Safari compared to the others. I had two punctures which has set me back a bit. The car is handling it and I am quite happy with my day. The car has a lot of torque and it’s an amazing machine. Tomorrow I will attack," said Alex.

Tundo was all smiles: "Safari is going on well so far. We are going on steady pace with no problems, athough I lost brakes on stage 1."

Ugandan Jas Mangat, who is racing on a Kenyan license, had a puncture in the morning which set them back by five minutes.