Patel targets Rwanda comeback as KCB chases crucial African Rally Championship points

The rally, scheduled for July 10–12, in Kigali has attracted 19 crews from across the continent and is expected to play a key role in shaping the championship battle. 

Patel arrives as the championship leader after collecting maximum ARC points at the Safari Rally Kenya and following that up with victory at the Pearl of Africa Uganda Rally.

However, the Kenyan knows Rwanda offers no guarantees. A crash there last year ended his bid for another victory making this year’s return about more than just extending his lead at the top of the standings.

“We’re off to Rwanda this week and, as always, Rwanda is a lovely place and a lovely rally to participate in. We’ve had very good runs in Rwanda except for last year when we had a big crash but we’re hoping for a comeback,” Patel said.

“We would love to win the rally and secure more points towards the Africa Championship, so that’s the aim. We’re going to go there and fight for top spot.”

Patel said the lessons from a frustrating 2025 season have changed the team’s approach this year, with consistency taking priority over chasing outright speed.

“We went into Safari Rally with the hope that we would finish. It wasn’t about going flat out from the word go. We succeeded in the mission, secured good points in Safari, did the same in Uganda and we’re hoping now to succeed in Rwanda,” he said.

He added that the team has spent time fine-tuning the car for Rwanda’s fast and smooth gravel roads, saying every rally presents an opportunity to improve both the car and the team’s performance.

Additionally, hoping to strengthen KCB’s campaign is Nikhil Sachania, who leads the ARC3 standings after winning his class in Uganda. While pleased with his position, he said there is still plenty of work to do.

“We’re lying first in ARC3 at the moment. We have a good lead, but we can’t take the pressure off. We still need to perform in Rwanda and the upcoming Tanzanian event,” Sachania said.

“We just want to maintain that lead and secure the ARC3 title for the second year.”

KCB Racing Team has entered five crews for the Rwanda round, with Patel joined by Sachania, Tinashe Gatimu, Oscar Ntambi and Rwanda’s Queen Kalimpinya as the team looks to strengthen its championship challenge across multiple categories.