Kenyan rally drivers, McRae Kimathi, Hamza Anwar, Jeremiah Wahome and Maxine Wahome will take part in this weekend’s Rwanda Mountain Gorilla Rally.
The 4 drivers are sponsored by Safaricom and Kenya Airways and will feature in their M-Sport Poland Ford Fiesta Rally 3 cars. Jeremiah Wahome will feature at the Rwanda Rally for the first time.
“I am delighted to once again be taking part in the Rwanda Rally. This is my second time participating in this championship where I performed well last year to finish third overall. Given the great weather and the good condition of my car, I believe I will be able to finish in a top position and hopefully improve on last year’s performance. I thank my sponsors Safaricom for being part of this journey and we promise to give our best not just in the Rwanda Rally, but also in the remaining events,” said McRae Kimathi.
Last year’s Rwanda Rally event saw McRae Kimathi finish third in 1:40:17 hours. This was behind the defending champion Kenya’s five-time Safari Rally winner Carl “Flash” Tundo and Karan Patel who finished in first and second positions respectively. Maxine Wahome, the only female driver, finished sixth with Hamza Anwar retiring due to a mechanical problem.
The Rwanda rally has a total of 26 entries. Among the key drivers who will be taking part are Kenya’s Karan Patel, navigated by Khan Tauseef; Rwanda’s Giancario Davite; Zimbabwe’s Leroy Gomes; and Uganda’s Nasser Yasi and Jas Mangat.
Saturday will be the longest day for the drivers as it will see them drive in Kamabuye, the longest stage at 27.07km. The shortest stage will be Gako, which is 8.30km long.
The four drivers are part of the FIA Rally Star programme, a global initiative that seeks to identify, train and develop talented young drivers aged between 17-27 years.