Youngster Sami Pajari was in commanding form on day two of the 2026 World Rally Championship (WRC) Safari Rally Kenya, clinching two legs of the morning session.
The second day of the iconic Safari, however, got off to a shaky start after the opening stage, SS3 Camp Moran 2, was cancelled following a heavy downpour on Wednesday night that worsened road conditions and rendered the section impassable.
At the opening competitive test, SS4 Loldia 1, nine-time world champion Sebastien Ogier laid down the early marker, clocking the fastest time of 14:18.8.
Pajari slotted into second with a time of 14:21.3, while Adrien Fourmaux completed the top three after stopping the clocks at 14:21.8.
Pajari then stamped his authority on the next stage, SS5 KenGen Geothermal, storming to victory in 6:53.3 ahead of Ogier (6:56.3) and Elfyn Evans (7:01.8).
Pajari carried that momentum into the final test of the morning loop, SS6 Kedong 1, where he again topped the timesheets with 6:22.6.
His Toyota teammate Takamoto Katsuta was second in 6:26.2, while Thierry Neuville guided his Hyundai to third with 6:28.1.
Toyota continue to dominate the overall leaderboard heading into the afternoon loop, locking out the top five positions.
Oliver Solberg leads the charge with a cumulative time of 58:30.3, followed by Evans in second (58:59.1) and Ogier completing the provisional podium in 59:08.5.
Katsuta sits fourth in 59:34.5 while Pajari rounds off the top five with a time of 1:00:02. Pajari expressed satisfaction with his strong morning charge.
“The morning was really nice for us, two stage wins. We are expecting some more difficult runs in the afternoon,” Pajari said.
He, however, highlighted the brutal Safari terrain, warning that the loose rocks scattered across the stages could prove lethal for tyres at high speeds.
“We have seen some moments. There are a lot of loose rocks, so it’s risky to trust the speed,” he said.
Solberg, who continues to set the pace overall, said he was pleased to maintain a steady rhythm through the demanding stages.
“We are just trying to find the rhythm and balance. It’s my first time with the car in these conditions and with this car,” he said.
“But we have been keeping the same rhythm as Evans and that’s a good thing. Ogier has also been pushing really hard.” The Swede hopes the afternoon loop will offer an even better run. “We will try our best and see what happens.”
Meanwhile, Evans was also satisfied with his morning outing.
“The morning session was more straightforward than yesterday,” Evans said. “We didn’t have the best run in the first stage. We struggled with the brake cooling and it wasn’t ideal. After that it was a clean run, but conservative in the jumps and rocky areas.”
The afternoon session will see crews restart at Kedong 2 before tackling KenGen Geothermal 2 and Loldia 2, before wrapping up the day’s action at Mzabibu 2.
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