Chager chalks up first win of season

Baldev Chagger's Mitsubishi Evo10 flies high around the Mavueni area in Kilifi on August 11, 2018. PHOTO | ANWAR SIDI |

What you need to know:

  • Tundo finishes third but retains overall national rally championship lead.
  • Rai, fresh from winning the recent Chloride Excide Hill Climb, was second in a Skoda Fabia.

Baldev Chager and Ravi Soni finally clinched their first victory of this year’s Kenya National Rally Championship season by winning the Mombasa Rally on Saturday.

"We have finally broken our winning jinx after three seasons of no major celebrations in the Kenya National Rally Championship. It is a good feeling to be a winner. The rally had stiff competition but we stayed on the right track to finally win our first event after three years," said Chager.

"Onkar Rai was quicker in the short stages until we opened up in the longer sections. This was my first win in Mombasa. So the celebrations are going to be more."

Rai, fresh from winning the recent Chloride Excide Hill Climb, was second in a Skoda Fabia.

The Kabras team driver was seeking his second win of the KNRC after winning the Nakuru Rally in the opening round of the series earlier in the season. It was bad luck for Carl Tundo who failed to record his fourth straight victory of the season after winning the last three rounds.

Driving a Mitsubishi Lancet with Tim Jessop, he finished in third place.

But Tundo still maintains the overall lead of the KNRC standings.

Eric Bengi and Tuta Mionki are the drivers to watch after yet another good show in the latest round of the national series. Their record includes an excellent fifth place in the recent Safari Rally.

They finished fourth overall driving a Subaru Impreza.

Izar Mirza was the best-placed home driver in fifth place, driving a Mitsubishi Lancer while Nikhil Sachania, the only handicapped driver in the competition, was placed ninth in a modified Mitsubishi Lancer with Alfir Khan as his navigator.

It was a bad event for the current leaders of the National Formula Championship, Darren Miranda and Wayne Fernandes whose Toyota Sprinter bowed out in the third stage of the event. Miranda was one of the 15 crews to retire from the rally.

The next round of the series, to be organised by the Nanyuki Rally Group, will be staged on September 8 and 9.