WRC 2
Virves claims WRC2 victory on Safari Rally Kenya debut
Robert Virves delivered an impressive performance on his Safari Rally Kenya debut to secure victory in WRC2 and an outstanding fifth place overall.
The Estonian guided his Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 through one of the most punishing fixtures in recent FIA World Rally Championship memory, mastering the demanding Kenyan terrain to claim his second career WRC2 win.
Virves’ victory was shaped during Saturday’s brutal leg when early leader Gus Greensmith ran into trouble. The Briton had set the early pace in his Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 before slipping behind Virves after a gearbox issue. Having closed the gap back down to just 17.2sec, a puncture for Greensmith handed Virves a 55.3sec advantage heading into the final leg which he carefully managed to seal victory by 30.3sec.
“I must say it feels amazing,” smiled Virves at the finish. “I wasn’t a big fan of coming here, but I think we experienced the proper Safari and to come through with no issues… incredible effort by the team and everyone else.”
Fabrizio Zaldívar secured third place to claim back-to-back Safari Rally Kenya podium finishes. The Paraguayan had to fend off a late challenge from Andreas Mikkelsen, while also overcoming a 10sec penalty.
Mikkelsen finished fourth on his Safari debut, while Diego Domínguez completed the top five after overcoming an engine misfire earlier in the rally to secure a career-best WRC2 result.
