President Uhuru Kenyatta on Sunday, June 27 awarded Sebastian Ogier and his navigator Julien Ingrassia after emerging winners in the just concluded WRC Safari Rally.
The seven-time world rally champion recovered from a suspension trouble on Friday, June 25 to clinch victory on the final day.
Ogier landed an advantage when event leader Thierry Neuville’s hopes of winnings came to an end after breaking his Hyundai i20 suspension during the Sunday’s morning stage.
Toyota’s Takamoto Katsuta would assume the rally lead but that was gradually sliced by Ogier who claimed two stages wins on Sunday.
Ogier would finally claim victory by 21.8 seconds becoming the first Safari Rally winner as the event commemorated its return to the World Rally Championship since 2002.
“It’s been an amazing experience to be here. The support we got from the people has been incredible. Thank you so much, you have a beautiful country! #SafariRallyKenya might be a bit shorter compared to the past but the challenge is still very tough. We enjoyed it,” wrote Ogier on Twitter following the win.
Ogier now extends his lead in the championship standings to 133 points; 33 points more than teammate Elfyn Evans.
