The arrangements for the World Rally Championship in Kenya spoke at the finish of the ninth special stage. According to several drivers, the route had been changed after the notice.
The Saturday of the World Rally Championship in Kenya started off fast, when two flat tires were seen already on the opening stretch and Ott Tänak too gassing hood open.
At the finish line of the next special stage, there was fierce criticism of the route. According to several drivers, the Elmenteita 1 clip had been changed after the notation.
Esapekka Lappi already as the first driver on the route gave harsh feedback to the organizers.
– The organizers have done a bad job. After the notation, flag lines had been drawn to the two cutting locations. We were promised that nothing would be changed after the notation. That’s really shitty, really shitty, the usually good-natured Lapland would talk exceptionally pissed off at the finish line.
The special test was a fast-paced safari, so there is hardly any time to react to changes. Lapland’s team mate Thierry Neuville agreed with the Finnish driver’s criticism. According to him too, the route had been changed after the notation.
– It was a startling moment to notice. It’s really dangerous. A large stone had been brought to the middle of the road. This shouldn’t happen, Neuville roared.
Also second in the World Series Elfyn Evans noticed changes after passing the special test to the finish line.
– It was like playing the lottery with the surgeries. There are places that were taped in the sheet music and now they have only been run through. Then there are places where a lot more stones have been brought after the notation, Evans was amazed.
Evans’ morning was otherwise sad when he suffered a flat tire on the opening stretch of the morning. At the same time, he fell to fifth overall.
Sports expert Henri Haapamäki reminds that there have been route confusions before, especially in more exotic rallies.
– It is very reprehensible if the organizer changes the route after the notation. The security risk is absolutely huge, he loads.
Haapamäki emphasizes that it is really dangerous if corners are changed when drivers drive at the very limit based on notes and videos. He says that the driver is saddened by the situation, because the action takes away trust in the organizer.
– The driver is not necessarily able to perform as well as he would like. He cannot trust whether a point on the route is exactly as it is in the notes, Haapamäki emphasizes.