The African McRae aiming to become a WRC pioneer

Named after World Rally Championship great Colin McRae, it was perhaps destined that Kenya’s McRae Kimathi would set foot in a rally car. Well versed when it comes to challenges in both life and sport, the sub-Saharan McRae is breaking down barriers and blazing a trail for African rally drivers.

Sport has often provided a platform for individuals to overcome obstacles and breakdown pre-conceived barriers. This is all too familiar for Kimathi, who last month, alongside co-driver Mwangi Kioni, became the first African crew to finish Rally Sweden just days after seeing snow for the first time.

This achievement however is set to be the first in a series of challenges the pair will face as they aim to work their way through the WRC ranks, beginning at the first rung of the ladder, the Junior WRC - a class that pitches aspiring young drivers against each other in identical four wheel drive Rally3 spec Ford Fiestas. Ironically, 27-year-old Kimathi’s plunge into the Junior WRC has arrived at the same age his idol and namesake Colin McRae won the WRC title in 1995, driving the iconic blue and yellow Subaru.

That said, it has been quite a journey for Kimathi up until this point. In Africa he is well known in rallying circles and comes from good stock as the son of Phineas Kimathi, a handy rally driver in his own right, having competed at Group N level in WRC Safari rallies in the late 1990s. Today, Phineas is the CEO of the iconic event and president of the Kenyan Motorsport Federation. Rallying runs in the family as evident by Phineas naming his son McRae after the famous Scot, a three-time winner of the Safari Rally.

“I think Colin was the main idol [growing up],” McRae Kimathi says when asked about his famous name. “His commitment, his bravery is something that stood out for me. As I grew older there were many other drivers that I admired but for me it was always Colin McRae.

“Malcolm [Wilson, boss of M-Sport that builds the Junior WRC Ford Fiestas] was telling me about when Colin drove for him, but I said to him there is another McRae here now and he is still driving a Ford.”

McRae Kimathi (right) stands alongside his father Phineas, a rallying ace in his own right

Photo by: M-Sport

After following in his father’s footsteps this Kenyan McRae has steadily climbed the ranks after taking up the discipline seriously seven years ago, once he completed his studies and became a qualified accountant. Last year he lifted the African junior title and made his WRC debut at the Safari Rally in a Rally3 Fiesta, but this season represents his biggest leap yet, a full season in the Junior WRC, the first gateway to the WRC ladder.

For Kimathi, he couldn’t have started with a more alien event than the pristine, but treacherously slippery, snow and ice of Sweden, the polar opposite of the hot desert sand/gravel rallies of Kenya. But, Kimathi is a determined driver eager to make his mark and become a pioneer and open a pathway for other drivers from Africa.

“I wanted to come to the world championship and for sure if I want to compete in the world championship I need to learn every surface snow, tarmac and gravel, so it is better to start from somewhere,” Kimathi tells Autosport. “We decided to start here in the Junior WRC to gain some experience on the rallies and hopefully continue in the future.

“If his tea-making skills were anything to go by I couldn’t put a lot of trust in him, but luckily enough he was better at driving than he was making tea!" Craig Breen

“I think this a big moment for African rally as I don’t think there has been anyone who has tried to compete in this part of the world. Hopefully I can be a pioneer of this project, and hopefully maybe the WRC can see there are some good drivers back in Africa and with the right infrastructure and the right platform maybe we can find a ladder to rise to the WRC.”

Flicking through the history books Africa has had fleeting representatives, let alone success in the WRC. Local drivers have flocked to compete in the Safari Rally over the years and, last year, three Kenyans scored world championship points in the rally’s return after a 19-year hiatus. But few have ventured outside of the continent. The last African to drive a top-flight WRC car was Zimbabwe’s Conrad Rautenbach, who scored eight points during a season with the famed the Citroen Junior team in 2009.

Kimathi hopes to change that statistic and while fully aware a long road ahead awaits, he’s prepared to take the plunge and start the journey that has begun by finishing fourth in the Junior WRC class and 30th overall on his snow debut in Sweden.

“I’m planning to do full season in the WRC if I’m able to do it in Rally3 just to gain valuable experience, learn the roads and stages and plan from there,” he says. “I could maybe go to Rally2 [WRC2] and then Rally1.

"It's such a great feeling,” he reflects on his Rally Sweden achievement. “I mean first time on snow and fourth overall is such an amazing feeling.”

While McRae missed out on a podium finish in Sweden, he won plenty of fans watching on from the snowbanks and around the world through the WRC’s coverage. His bubbly personality and beaming smile captured the imagination of fans and was ever present in the build up to the event as the world got to know Kimathi. To help tackle the monumental task of driving on snow for the first time he was offered the chance to meet M-Sport WRC star Craig Breen, who offered to help the Kenyan adjust to the condition through a pre-event test on a frozen lake in Norway. It would prove to be valuable experience ahead of the event.

“Craig was fantastic,” he added. “He is a really fast and a smooth driver and he really taught me a different way of driving which of course I did not know. It has really helped, fingers crossed he taught me something. He corrected little bits and pieces of my mistakes and showed me how much detail I need and how much work I need to put in to make sure my driving is at the level what the WRC requires. I didn’t want to disappoint him by not finishing.

Breen was far from disappointed in Kimathi’s driving skills, but did have some question marks around his tea-making skills on the day, as showcased in a video that lit up social media.

“If his tea-making skills were anything to go by I couldn’t put a lot of trust in him, but luckily enough he was better at driving than he was making tea,” joked Breen, the WRC’s very own tea obsessive, before on a serious note adding, “he’s an incredibly nice guy, first and foremost. We had a lot of fun. Even his whole approach is a breath of fresh air. I enjoyed it. He definitely learned a lot.

Rally Sweden was Kimathi's first taste of racing on snow and ice

Photo by: M-Sport

“He’d never seen snow before in his life and was a day into the first test before he realised he was driving on a lake, he didn’t know. He just thought it was a track in a field and he needed to be explained that there was water underneath there. It’s amazing, it’s a great news story these two guys coming from another continent having never seen snow in their life about to head into some of the fastest stages in the world.”

While Kimathi was all smiles during the event as the ultimate underdog hauled his Fiesta through the snowbank lined bobsleigh-like runs cheered on by spectators, navigating through the snow wasn’t his only challenge. In what is becoming increasingly and worryingly more common, Kimathi was subject to racist abuse on social media, which resulted in the FIA issuing the following statement condemning the posts made by individuals online in the lead up to the event.

“In the build-up to Rally Sweden, FIA Junior WRC competitor McRae Kimathi has been subjected to racial abuse on social media,” read an FIA statement.

“I think this a big moment for African rally as I don’t think there has been anyone who has tried to compete in this part of the world. Hopefully I can be a pioneer of this project, and hopefully maybe the WRC can see there are some good drivers back in Africa" McRae Kimathi

“We condemn racist abuse and any form of discrimination towards our teams, competitors and fans and we will take all necessary steps to help ensure that any abuse is reported to the relevant authority.

“We are working to build a more diverse and inclusive sport and abuse must be highlighted and eliminated. There is no place for it in our sport and in society.”

It was timely reminder of the challenges that still exist in motorsport for drivers of colour. Admirably, Kimathi took the situation in his stride and refused to let it be a distraction, welcoming the action undertaken by the FIA in highlighting that such behaviour is not tolerated.

Kimathi hopes to blaze a trail for more African rally drivers to join the WRC

Photo by: M-Sport

“I tried to block it out of my mind because what happens on social media there is not much you change,” he added, when asked how he deals with such comments. “I’m here to enjoy my Rally Sweden and what happens on social media is on social media. I’m here to have fun and enjoy, get the experience and keep learning and move forward.

"I think that was the right move for them [the FIA] and it shows they want to take this sport seriously in terms of diversifying the sport and incorporating lots of people. Also the promoter and M-Sport Poland are really behind me, I feel comfortable.”

Kimathi’s talent behind the wheel shone through and scenes of him and co-driver Kioni celebrating a history making, trail blazing performance became the overriding memory of Kenyan duo’s snow adventure.

Now equipped with the accolade of becoming the first African driver and crew to finish Rally Sweden, Kimathi’s next challenge is the tarmac of Rally Croatia in April. Like the snow of Sweden, Kimathi will find himself facing another surface to conquer in the guise of asphalt, given tarmac rallies are also a rarity in his home country.

But again, this is just another step on a journey Kimathi hopes will lead him to one day the top of the WRC.

“We don’t have lots of tarmac rallies in Kenya, so it will be a new surface, so it is going to be tricky,” he adds. “It is not easy as all of these rounds are so specialised so everything is new but I am learning each and every single day, so I’m happy.”

McRae Kimathi, Mwangi Kioni, Ford Fiesta Rally3

Photo by: M-Sport