SportPesa Racing duo Varese & Kareithi secure SPV podium and seventh overall at 2026 KNRC opener

• SportPesa Racing duo Leonardo Varese and Kigondu Kareithi secured an SPV podium finish and placed seventh overall at the 2026 KNRC opener.
• The 2026 Kenya National Rally Championship (KNRC) campaign kicked off on Saturday, August 1, at Stoni Athi.
• Varese and Kareithi crossed the finish line in 02:09:28.7 to collect valuable championship points.

Leonardo Varese and his longtime co-driver, Kigondu Kareithi, kicked off their Kenya National Rally Championship (KNRC) 2026 campaign with a podium finish, claiming second place in the Specially Prepared Vehicles (SPV) class and seventh overall at Stoni Athi on Saturday, August 1.

The SportPesa Racing crew, driving the Toyota GR Yaris Rally3, enjoyed a clean run through Stoni Athi’s mixed stages, finishing in 02:09:28.7 behind SPV class winner Javed Lota from Mombasa.

Lota and navigator Konaine Yakub, aboard the Subaru N10, secured the SPV victory and finished fourth overall in 02:00:07.7 despite receiving an eight-minute penalty. Varese and Kareithi crossed the line in 02:09:28.7 to collect valuable championship points.

ALSO READ: SportPesa Racing’s Varese pleased with Toyota Yaris progress after seventh-place finish at KNRC Round 1

Speaking to SportPesa Blog after the eventful day, Varese said they felt confident with the car after making several modifications following their last outing at the WRC Safari Rally, adding that they enjoyed every moment of the rally.

“We’re still in the early stages with this car. We only drove a couple of stages during Safari, and Safari was not really an event where you can push and do a lot of work on the car,” Varese said.

“But today we got faster and faster as the event progressed, and we were very comfortable with the pace. The car handled very well, and the small modifications we made before the rally to strengthen it worked perfectly.”

The day, however, belonged to 17-year-old Amaan Ganatra. The Ganatra Racing driver announced himself in style on his KNRC debut, taking overall victory and winning Class N in a Mitsubishi Evo 9 with a time of 01:52:03.1.

Rajveer Singh Thethy and James Mwangi finished second overall and second in Class N in 01:58:55.6, while Issa Amwari and Dennis Mwenda completed the podium in 01:59:40.1.

SportPesa Racing’s Kareithi backs Kenya’s rally next generation

With several young stars lighting up the stages on Saturday, Varese’s navigator, Kigo Kareithi, told the SportPesa Blog he was delighted to see the championship return after more than two years.

He also thanked the sponsors for breathing new life into the sport.

“After two years, the championship is back. Actually, it’s been more than two years. Let’s not talk about the championship just yet. Let’s first do one or two rallies,” Kigo said.

“We also give great thanks to all the sponsors involved here, not just SportPesa. Many other teams have also received support from different corporates. To other companies out there, this is a great platform to put your brand out in the open.”

ALSO READ: Gaming giant SportPesa pumps 40M into Kenyan motorsport, relaunches racing team & rising stars

Backed by leading gaming firm SportPesa through a KSh40 million sponsorship this season, Varese and Kareithi are also spearheading the SportPesa Racing Rising Stars initiative, aimed at mentoring the next generation of rally talent, including their sons, Jason Kareithi and Adriano Varese.

Kigo said seeing the younger drivers competing at the highest level gave him confidence that Kenyan rallying has a bright future.

“It can only be a win-win situation. The ethos of this new federation is to focus on young people, and we are very proud and happy to see that. In fact, Leo and I were saying that if it wasn’t for Azza Anwar and Azhar Bhatti, we would have been the oldest crew here. This is now a young person’s sport, just as it is globally,” he explained.

“Worldwide, rallying belongs to young people. Those of us who have been around for years are simply here to guide them and ensure we leave behind structures that will help rallying continue growing from strength to strength in Kenya.”

Meanwhile, the 2WD category produced another memorable debut as Michuki Hinga, son of former 2WD champion Charles Hinga, claimed victory in class on his first KNRC appearance.

Driving a Toyota Runx, he finished sixth overall in 02:05:06.0. Timothy Kinoti and Qui Mungai were second in class, while Pius Njiiru and Sam Karangatha finished third.

George Kyriazi and Max Green claimed top honours in Class CI in their Ford Escort with a time of 02:12:09.1, ahead of Azar Anwar and Azhar Bhatti in a BMW, while Shakeel Khan and Riyaz Ismail completed the podium in another Ford Escort.

According to Clerk of the Course Pipi Renu, Round Two of the KNRC will return to the demanding Stoni Athi stages on the weekend of September 19-20, 2026.

KNRC 2026 Round One – Provisional Results (August 1, 2026)

Overall Classification

1. Amaan Ganatra / Mudasar Chaud – Mitsubishi Evo 9 – 01:52:03
2. Rajveer Singh Thethy / James Mwangi – Subaru N12 – 01:58:55 (+06:52)
3. Issa Amwari / Dennis Mwenda – Mitsubishi Evo 10 – 01:59:40 (+07:37)
4. Javed Lota / Konaine Yakub – Subaru N10 – 02:00:07 (+08:04) – 1st SPV
5. Harpreet Singh Bhogal / Ismail – Mitsubishi Evo 10 – 02:02:19 (+10:16)
6. Michuki Hinga / Dennis Yaya – Toyota Runx – 02:05:06 (+13:02) – 1st 2WD
7. Leonardo Varese / Kigondu Kareithi – Toyota Yaris – 02:09:28 (+17:25) – 2nd SPV
8. George Kyriazi / Max Green – Ford Escort – 02:12:09 (+20:06) – 1st CI
9. Azar Anwar / Azhar Bhatti – BMW – 02:14:11 (+22:08)
10. Shakeel Khan / Riyaz Ismail – Ford Escort – 02:17:00 (+24:57)
11. Timothy Kinoti / Qui Mungai – Toyota Runx – 02:32:16 (+40:13)
12. Pius Njiiru / Sam Karangatha – Toyota Levin – 02:37:38 (+45:35)
13. Sanna Anwar / Shabaz Anwar – Daewoo Cielo – 02:49:14 (+57:11)
14. Azfar Abdulmalik / Abdul Daim – Toyota Levin – 02:52:26 (+01:00:23)

Category Results

Class N

1. Amaan Ganatra / Mudasar Chaud – Mitsubishi Evo 9 – 01:52:03.1
2. Rajveer Singh Thethy / James Mwangi – Subaru N12 – 01:58:55.6 (+06:52.5)
3. Issa Amwari / Dennis Mwenda – Mitsubishi Evo 10 – 01:59:40.1 (+07:37.0)
4. Harpreet Singh Bhogal / Ismail Ta – Mitsubishi Evo 10 – 02:02:19.6 (+10:16.5)

Class 2WD

1. Michuki Hinga / Dennis Yaya – Toyota Runx – 02:05:06.0 (6th Overall)
2. Timothy Kinoti / Qui Mungai – Toyota Runx – 02:32:16.1 (+27:10.1)
3. Pius Njiiru / Sam Karangatha – Toyota Levin – 02:37:38.1 (+32:32.1)
4. Sanna Anwar / Shabaz Anwar – Daewoo Cielo – 02:49:14.4 (+44:08.4)
5. Azfar Abdulmalik / Abdul Daim – Toyota Levin – 02:52:26.1 (+47:20.1)

Class CI

1. George Kyriazi / Max Green – Ford Escort – 02:12:09.1
2. Azar Anwar / Azhar Bhatti – BMW – 02:14:11.5 (+02:02.4)
3. Shakeel Khan / Riyaz Ismail – Ford Escort – 02:17:00.2 (+04:51.1)

Class SPV

1. Javed Lota / Konaine Yakub – Subaru N10 – 02:00:07.7 (4th Overall)
2. Leonardo Varese / Kigondu Kareithi – Toyota Yaris – 02:09:28.7 (+09:21.0) (7th Overall)