Safari Rally
The Safari Rally is considered by many to be the world's toughest rally. It was first held from 27 May to 1 June 1953 as the East African Coronation Safari in Kenya, Uganda and Tanganyika,[1] as a celebration of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. In 1960 it was renamed the East African Safari Rally and kept that name until 1974, when it became the Safari Rally.
The event was part of the World Rally Championship calendar for many years until being excluded due to lack of funding and organisation in 2003. The Kenyan government is trying to get the rally's WRC status restored. Since 2003 the event has been part of the African Rally Championship organized by the FIA. It is currently known as the KCB Safari Rally after its sponsor, Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB).
Local driver Shekhar Mehta was the most successful in the event with five outright victories (1973, 1979-1982).
Past winners
- 1953 - No official winner declared. Fewest penalty points:
- Alan Dix / Johnny Larsen | Volkswagen Beetle 1131 cc
- Doug Airth / Raymond Collinge | Standard Vanguard
- 1954 - Vic Preston Sr (Ken) / D P Marwaha | Volkswagen Beetle
- 1955 - Vic Preston Sr (Ken) / D P Marwaha | Ford Zephyr
- 1956 - Eric Cecil / Tony Vickers | DKW
- 1957 - Gus Hofmann /Arthur Burton | DKW
- 1958 - No official winner declared. Fewest penalty points:
- Arne Kopperud /Kora Kopperud | Ford Zephyr II (Lion class)
- Morris Temple-Boreham / Mike Armstrong | Auto Union 1000 (Leopard class)
Year | Rally Name / Dates | Winning Driver / Co-driver | Winning Car | Status |
---|---|---|---|---|
1959 | 7th East African Safari Rally | Bill Fritschy Jack Ellis |
Mercedes-Benz 190 | |
1960 | 8th East African Safari Rally | Bill Fritschy Jack Ellis |
Mercedes-Benz 190 | |
1961 | 9th East African Safari Rally | John Manussis Bill Coleridge David Beckett |
Mercedes-Benz 220SE | |
1962 | 10th East African Safari Rally | Tommy Fjastad Bernhard Schmider |
Volkswagen 1200 | |
1963 | 11th East African Safari Rally | Nick Nowicki Paddy Cliff |
Peugeot 404 | |
1964 | 12th East African Safari Rally | Peter Hughes Bill Young |
Ford Cortina GT | |
1965 | 13th East African Safari Rally | Joginder Singh Jaswant Singh |
Volvo PV 544 | |
1966 | 14th East African Safari Rally | Bert Shankland Chris Rothwell |
Peugeot 404 | |
1967 | 15th East African Safari Rally | Bert Shankland Chris Rothwell |
Peugeot 404 | |
1968 | 16th East African Safari Rally | Nick Nowicki Paddy Cliff |
Peugeot 404[2] | |
1969 | 17th East African Safari Rally | Robin Hillyar Jock Aird |
Ford Taunus 20M RS | |
1970 | 18th East African Safari Rally | Edgar Herrmann Hans Schüller |
Datsun 1600 SSS | |
1971 | 19th East African Safari Rally | Edgar Herrmann Hans Schüller |
Datsun 240Z | |
1972 | 20th East African Safari Rally (30 Mar - 3 Apr) |
Hannu Mikkola Gunnar Palm |
Ford Escort RS1600 | IMC |
1973 | 21st East African Safari Rally (19 - 23 Apr) |
Shekhar Mehta Lofty Drews |
Datsun 240Z | WRC |
1974 | 22nd East African Safari Rally (11 - 15 Apr) |
Joginder Singh David Doig |
Mitsubishi Lancer 1600 GSR | WRC |
1975 | 23rd Safari Rally (27 - 31 Mar) |
Ove Andersson Arne Hertz |
Peugeot 504 | WRC |
1976 | 24th Safari Rally (15 - 19 Apr) |
Joginder Singh David Doig |
Mitsubishi Lancer 1600 GSR | WRC |
1977 | 25th Safari Rally (7 - 11 Apr) |
Björn Waldegård Hans Thorszelius |
Ford Escort RS1800 | WRC |
1978 | 26th Safari Rally (23 - 27 Mar) |
Jean-Pierre Nicolas Jean-Claude Lefèbvre |
Peugeot 504 V6 Coupé | WRC |
1979 | 27th Safari Rally (12 - 16 Apr) |
Shekhar Mehta Mike Doughty |
Datsun 160J | WRC |
1980 | 28th Safari Rally (3 - 7 Apr) |
Shekhar Mehta Mike Doughty |
Datsun 160J | WRC |
1981 | 29th Safari Rally (16 - 29 Apr) |
Shekhar Mehta Mike Doughty |
Nissan Violet GT | WRC |
1982 | 30th Marlboro Safari Rally (8 - 12 Apr) |
Shekhar Mehta Mike Doughty |
Nissan Violet GT | WRC |
1983 | 31st Marlboro Safari Rally (30 Mar - 4 Apr) |
Ari Vatanen Terry Harryman |
Opel Ascona 400 | WRC |
1984 | 32nd Marlboro Safari Rally (19 - 23 Apr) |
Björn Waldegård Hans Thorszelius |
Toyota Celica TCT | WRC |
1985 | 33rd Marlboro Safari Rally (4 - 8 Apr) |
Juha Kankkunen Fred Gallagher |
Toyota Celica TCT | WRC |
1986 | 34th Marlboro Safari Rally (29 Mar - 2 Apr) |
Björn Waldegård Fred Gallagher |
Toyota Celica TCT | WRC |
1987 | 35th Marlboro Safari Rally (16 - 20 Apr) |
Hannu Mikkola Arne Hertz |
Audi 200 Quattro | WRC |
1988 | 36th Marlboro Safari Rally (31 Mar - 4 Apr) |
Miki Biasion Tiziano Siviero |
Lancia Delta Integrale | WRC |
1989 | 37th Marlboro Safari Rally (23-27 Mar) |
Miki Biasion Tiziano Siviero |
Lancia Delta Integrale | WRC |
1990 | 38th Marlboro Safari Rally (11-16 Apr) |
Björn Waldegård Fred Gallagher |
Toyota Celica GT-4 ST165 | WRC |
1991 | 39th Martini Safari Rally 27 (Mar - 1 Apr) |
Juha Kankkunen Juha Piironen |
Lancia Delta Integrale 16V | WRC |
1992 | 40th Martini Safari Rally 27 (Mar - 1 Apr) |
Carlos Sainz Luis Moya |
Toyota Celica Turbo 4WD | WRC |
1993 | 41st Trustbank Safari Rally (8-12 Apr) |
Juha Kankkunen Juha Piironen |
Toyota Celica Turbo 4WD | WRC |
1994 | 42nd Trustbank Safari Rally (31 Mar - 3 Apr) |
Ian Duncan David Williamson |
Toyota Celica Turbo 4WD | WRC |
1995 | 43rd Safari Rally (14-17 Apr) |
Yoshio Fujimoto Arne Hertz |
Toyota Celica Turbo 4WD | 2LWC |
1996 | 44th Safari Rally (5-7 Apr) |
Tommi Mäkinen Seppo Harjanne |
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 3 | WRC |
1997 | 45th Safari Rally (1-3 Mar) |
Colin McRae Nicky Grist |
Subaru Impreza WRC | WRC |
1998 | 46th Safari Rally (28 Feb - 2 Mar) |
Richard Burns Robert Reid |
Mitsubishi Carisma GT Evo 4 | WRC |
1999 | 47th Safari Rally (26-28 Feb) |
Colin McRae Nicky Grist |
Ford Focus | WRC |
2000 | 48th Sameer Safari Rally (25-27 Feb) |
Richard Burns Robert Reid |
Subaru Impreza WRC | WRC |
2001 | 49th Safari Rally (20-22 Jul) |
Tommi Mäkinen Risto Mannisenmäki |
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 6.5 | WRC |
2002 | 50th Inmarsat Safari Rally (12-14 Jul) |
Colin McRae Nicky Grist |
Ford Focus | WRC |
2003 | 51st KCB Safari Rally (9-11 Oct) |
Glen Edmunds Titch Phillips |
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 6 | ARC |
2004 | 52nd KCB Safari Rally (12-14 Mar) |
Carl Tundo Tim Jessop |
Subaru Impreza | ARC |
2005 | 53rd KCB Safari Rally (15th - 17th Jul) |
Glen Edmunds Des Page-Morris |
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 7 | ARC |
2006 | 54th KCB Safari Rally (24 - 26 Mar) |
Azar Anwar George Mwangi |
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 6 | ARC |
2007 | 55th KCB Safari Rally (9-11 Mar) |
Conrad Rautenbach Peter Marsh |
Subaru Impreza N10 | IRC & ARC |
2008 | 56th KCB Safari Rally (27-29 Jun) |
Lee Rose Piers Daykin |
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 9 | ARC |
2009 | 57th KCB Safari Rally (3-5 Apr) |
Carl Tundo Tim Jessop |
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 9 | IRC & ARC |
2010 | 58th KCB Safari Rally (2-4 Apr) |
Lee Rose Piers Daykin |
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 9 | ARC |
Notes: IMC = International Championship for Manufacturers, WRC = World Rally Championship, 2LWC = 2-Litre World Cup, ARC = African Rally Championship, IRC = Intercontinental Rally Challenge
East African Safari Rally (classic)
The East African Safari Rally is a Classic rally event first held in 2003 to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the first running of the event. The event has since been held biennially.
Year | Dates | Winning Driver / Co-driver | Winning Car |
---|---|---|---|
2003 | Dec 10 - Dec 19 | Rob Collinge Anton Levitan |
Datsun 240Z |
2005 | Dec 1 - Dec 10 | Rob Collinge Anton Levitan |
Datsun 260Z |
2007 | Nov 25 - Dec 3 | Björn Waldegård Mathias Waldegård |
Ford Escort Mk1 |
2009 | Nov 22 - Dec 1 | Ian Duncan Amaar Slatch |
Ford Mustang |
References
External links
- KMSF official website
- Kenya National Rally Championship
- African Rally Championship official website
- International Rally Challenge
- Race results since 1970 at Rallybase.nl website
- World Rally Archive - Safari Rally
- Article on VW Beetles' performances in the Safari Rally
- "The East African Safari Rally & Joginder Singh", Eric Cecil, 1973
- East African Safari Rally (classic) official website
- East African Safari Rally (classic) 2007 (Team 51 Pictures)