Takamoto Katsuta has rolled on Wednesday morning’s Safari Rally Kenya shakedown.
The Japanese dropped the Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 on his third run at the 3.35-mile Lolida stage. Katsuta finished the stage, 43 seconds down on the fastest time.
The car rolled twice, but landed on its wheels and fired back up again without any assistance.
The car is back in remote service now, with what looks like superficial damage to the bodywork. The team is assessing the damage.
😳 @TakamotoKatsuta 😬
🎥 Unknown pic.twitter.com/lJKi3m775z— eWRC-results (@eWRCresults) June 21, 2023
One onlooker told DirtFish: “The car doesn’t look too bad and it seemed to be driving straight coming in here.
“From what we’ve heard from around the car, they’ll put some panels on it and it should be good to go. Obviously, when you look at the time and the fact that he drove it out of the stage, it’s not been a big thing.”
Katsuta has finished the previous two Safaris on the podium, second in 2021 and third last time out. Talking to DirtFish ahead of the event, he said: “It’s true I have a good record and made some good results here, but there’s no pressure – I’ll just do my best.”
Katsuta is not registered for points this wekeend as he’s not competing with Toyota’s main team. Sébastien Ogier joins Kalle Rovanperä and Elfyn Evans in the official squad.
