Kenyan rally duo Karan Patel and navigator Tauseef Khan are aiming to use the 2025 WRC Safari Rally as a launchpad in their quest for a third consecutive African Rally Championship (ARC) crown.
Safari Rally, which is scheduled for March 20-23 will not only count as a round of the World Rally Championship (WRC) but will also serve as a key battlefront in the Kenya National Rally Championship (KNRC) and the opening stage of the FIA African Rally Championship (ARC).
Kenya will set the stage for the ARC calendar— a shift from the previous season—where the Pearl of Africa Rally in Uganda held the honour of being the opening event. Round Two of the ARC will be the Pearl of Africa Uganda Rally scheduled for May 9-11.
The third and penultimate round of the season will be the Rallye International du Burundi, which will run from August 15-17. Rwanda Mountain Gorilla Rally, which is the final round, is set to crown the 2025 ARC champion.
The event will take place from September 12-14 and is expected to mark a thrilling conclusion to the championship.
Tauseef reiterated the duo’s determination to extend their dominance on the African stage by defending their crown.
“We plan to try to defend our ARC title which will mean we win it for a third consecutive time,” Tauseef said. Patel and Tauseef first conquered Africa in 2023 in a Ford Fiesta R2 while last year, they topped the ARC rankings in a Skoda R5.
Uganda’s Mukula Junior navigated by Edward Kiyingi finished second in their Subaru Impreza STi with another Uganda duo of driver Mutebi Nasser and Steven Bunya third in their Mitsubishi Lancer Evo.
However, Tauseef acknowledged that securing a historic third title won’t be a walk in the park but credited their team’s unwavering support as a key motivation.
“It’s not an easy journey but we thank our team for supporting us and being with us throughout this journey,” he noted. He further lauded KCB Bank, the team’s primary sponsor, for their continued backing.
“It’s a privilege and honour to be part of the KCB family and we thank them for believing in us all through,” he remarked.
Last Friday, KCB unveiled a formidable four-car lineup for the Safari Rally, including the mother-daughter pairing of Tinashe and Caroline Gatimu, Evans Kavisi and Absalom Aswani and Nikhil Sachania with navigator Deep Patel.
The team received a Sh23 million boost to aid in their preparations for the Safari Rally. Driving in their trusted Skoda Fabia R5, Tauseef is hoping they can secure a podium.
“We hope we deliver a resounding performance that our sponsors expect of us,” he noted.
Last year’s edition saw Finnish driver Kalle Rovanpera and
his navigator Jonne Halttunen
reign supreme in their Toyota
GR Yaris Rally 1.
