Il Messaggiere - Evans consolidates lead at hectic Safari Rally Kenya

The Welshman went into the penultimate day of action in east Africa leading by just 7.7sec ahead of second-placed Kalle Rovanpera of Finland.

But Evans laid down a marker in his Toyota right from the get-go as he steadily grew his lead to nearly two minutes ahead of the final day of action on Sunday, while his main competitors all suffered a series of mishaps.

"It's definitely been a proper Safari so far," said Evans.

"Two minutes; normally you would say that guarantees you a win - but not here.

"On a rally like Kenya, you have to weigh up the risk factor. We still need to drive well tomorrow, that goes without saying, and see what (points) we can pick up."

After the initial bone-dry dust bowls of the opening stages, the rain came thundering down on the repeated afternoon loop.

Rovanpera was hit by a front-right tyre deflation near Elmenteita, a front-left puncture at Soysambu and later a damaged rear suspension arm to fall from second overall to fifth.

Estonia's Ott Tanak also experienced a myriad of issues but now lies second, with a lead of 2min 36.0sec over third-placed Hyundai team-mate Thierry Neuville.

Neuville himself suffered two punctures, a misted windscreen and a misfiring engine.

Evans is in prime position to pick up his first Safari Rally win, but nothing can be taken for granted with five stages still to come on Sunday.

E.Mancini--IM