Tundo fastest man in Olepolos

Carl ‘Flash’ Tundo was simply in a class of his own.

Tundo beat 39 drivers on Sunday to win the KCB S&L Rally, the sixth of the eight rounds Kenya National Rally Championship in Olepolos and Corner Baridi.

Tundo was handed the good news on entering the service park at Olepolos after Lee Rose had suffered a tyre puncture in the final leg.

Tundo, who was navigated by Tim Jessop in a Subaru Impreza N10, has now opened the championship battle, cutting leader Baldev Chager’s lead to 75 points.

Tundo has now amassed 335 points with Chager, who struggled to finish fourth, is on 410 points. Charles Hinga and Michel Puchercos rolled, Susheel Shah’s Subaru Impreza encountered suspension problems, while Anwar Pandya’s car suffered a fuel pump problem.

Hinga (95 points) has lost ground at the top of the two-wheel drive to Leonardo Varese (102 points) who won in this category on Sunday.

Tundo, who is sponsored by Dalbit Petroleum, was timed at 1:46.07 to clinch the title while OiLibya’s Azar Anwar held on tightly to take the second slot in 1:47.28.

Anwar, navigated by Julius Ngigi, started on pole and had the risk of clearing the way for his rivals albeit racing cautiously.

Was forced to stop

His second slot finish, his best this season, also see’s him jump to 282 points to retain his fourth slot.

The Triton Petroleum crew of Lee Rose and Piers Daykin saw the title slip through their fingers within distance to the finish line.

The duo, known for their fast speed, proved the organisers right as they led their Mitsubishi Evo9 car through most of the stages and looked destined for the champagne celebration only to have a puncture.

He tried to push on driving another 1km, but was forced to stop and fix it if he was to avoid another early retirement, having faced a similar nightmare in Mogotio and Nanyuki.

Rose was timed at 1:47.44, which was 16 seconds slower than Anwar. He, however, retains his third slot with 300 points.

Chager was fourth, having survived a scary first stage puncture which left him in 10th as he started the second stage at Kipeto to Corner Baridi.