- Karan Patel eyes third African Rally Championship title after finishing as top Kenyan at WRC Safari Rally 2026.
- Patel and navigator Tauseef Khan clocked 4:26:54.7 to finish 17th overall.
- The rally served as Round 3 of the World Rally Championship and the 2026 ARC season opener.
Kenya’s rally driver Karan Patel has set his sights on a third Africa Rally Championship title after emerging as the top Kenyan finisher at the just-concluded third round of the World Rally Championship, the Safari Rally Kenya 2026.
Patel and his navigator Tauseef Khan overcame the brutal challenges thrown at them by the Naivasha terrain to finish as the leading Kenyan crew behind the wheel of a Skoda Fabia Rally2.
They clocked a cumulative time of 4:26:54.7 to secure 17th place overall.
ALSO READ: Takamoto Katsuta claims maiden WRC title at Safari Rally Kenya 2026
Patel recounts brutal WRC Safari Rally stages
The 2022 Kenya National Rally Championship champions stated after the final loop at Hell’s Gate in Naivasha that the Safari Rally 2026 presented some of the toughest stages he has ever contested particularly the opening test at Camp Moran.
It was a crazy event from the start. We began with the most difficult stage I’ve ever done, which was Camp Moran in the rain. I think that set the precedence to keep pushing and gave us a good kick start to the rally. We started with the hardest part, but things got smoother as we went on. Sleeping Warrior was cancelled – I think that would have been even more demanding,” he explained on Sunday.
On the opening day, Patel finished strong at the top of the Kenyan contingent and sixth in WRC 2, just five seconds behind the day’s pacesetter, Toyota’s Gus Greensmith.
Friday proved more challenging, as he received a 10-second penalty.
Still, he managed to finish in seventh place heading into Saturday the penultimate day, where he maintained that position and carried it through to the final day, keeping him at the top of the Africa Rally Championship standings.
Patel was deeply grateful that their car returned to the garage in one piece, unlike several others that succumbed to the punishing conditions of one of the WRC’s most demanding rounds.
“We are just happy to see we got the car back in one piece, and we are thrilled to be leading the Africa Rally Championship,” he said.
Karan Patel eyes third African Rally Championship title
The two-time ARC champion did not hold back in thanking his supporters for the journey so far, while also making it clear that he is aiming for a third continental crown and maybe more down the line.
I feel lucky to be in this position year after year. I really feel the people behind me have made this success even more special. Definitely, we will be going for the third title and if it’s possible, we will push for a fourth and fifth too,” he reiterated.
The Safari Rally not only served as the third round of the WRC season but also doubled as the opening leg of the 2026 African Rally Championship campaign.
Coming behind Patel was Aakif Virani, who alongside navigator Zahir Shah piloted their Skoda Fabia to 18th overall with a time of 4:43:06.7.
In 19th, Samman Vohra and Drew Sturrock posted 4:46:47.1 in their Skoda Fabia Rally2 Evo. The brotherly duo of Jasmeet and Ravinder Chana powered their Ford Fiesta Rally2 to 21st overall, clocking 5:06:35.7.
Paraplegic driver Nikhil Sachania and trusted navigator Deep Patel guided their Ford Fiesta Rally3 to 23rd place with a time of 5:15:33.4.
While, rounding off the Kenyan finishers were Evans Nzioka and Absalom Aswani, who wrestled their Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X through the punishing stages to secure 24th place in 5:21:38.9.
