Equator Rally Kenya, traditionally held in April, has now been moved to 26-27 October, according to the draft 2024 Motorsport Calendar released today.
Unlike the past three editions when it ran as the second round of the FIA African Rally Championship (ARC), this year’s Equator Rally will be the season-closer and will be organized by the Sikh Union Club (SUC).
This follows the change of dates of the iconic WRC Safari Rally from end of June to its traditional fabled Easter dates.
Kenya Motor Sport Federation (KMSF) General Manager Mwaura Njuguna confirmed the finalization of the 2024 Motorsport Calendar.
“The Motor Sport Council of KMSF met and finalized the final draft of the calendar which awaits board approval next week. The Kenya National Karting series has now scaled up from its traditional 10 races to 12 rounds. We have also reintroduced the Hillclimb which will feature six rounds next season,” Mwaura explained.
Mwaura also announced the introduction of Drag Racing in 2024. The Drag series will feature three rounds organized by Delta Motorsport.
The first of the three-round Drag racing series is slated for the weekend of 13-14 April. The EASCR Mini Classic Rally is programmed for 17-18 August.
The 2024 Motorsport season will start with the Annual Awards Gala on the weekend of 27-28 January.
The Awards will feat the most deserving personalities, and ultimately, the motorsport personality of the year.
Last year’s motorsport personality award was bestowed to rally driver Karan Patel on winning his maiden Kenya National Rally Championship (KNRC) title and finishing second in the ARC series behind Leroy Gomes of Zambia.
Sikh Union Autocross 1 will serve as the season’s first competition on the weekend of February 3-4. Mwaura added that the Kenya National Autocross championship will retain its 10-round competition format next season.
Eldoret Rally -organized by Western Kenya Motor Club (WKMC) -will host the opening round of the KNRC
What’s more, Nanyuki Rally will return as the fourth event of the season on the weekend of June 15-16 after a one-year hiatus.
Last year’s Nanyuki Rally Group (NRG) round was run by Eldoret after the former requested to skip their event citing logistical challenges.
THE FIA ARC CALENDAR-2024
24-25 Feb: ARC 1-Rallye Bandama- Cote d’ Ivoire
May 11-12: ARC 2-Pearl of Africa Uganda Rally
29-30 June: ARC 3- Mountain Gorilla Rally-Rwanda
July 27-28: ARC 4-Zambia International Rally
24-25 Aug: ARC 5-Rally of Tanzania
Sep 21-22: ARC 6-Burundi International Rally
26-27 Oct: ARC 7-Equator Rally -Kenya