In an event long renowned for its demanding conditions, Saturday delivered a dramatic sequence of setbacks that transformed the overall classification. What had begun as a commanding Toyota 1-2-3 was undone during a punishing morning loop, allowing Katsuta to move into the lead and then consolidate his advantage through a challenging afternoon.

The decisive turning point came on the 31km Sleeping Warrior stage and the road section that followed. FIA World Rally Championship leader Elfyn Evans was first to retire after stopping on the stage with terminal rear-right suspension damage.

Further drama followed on the liaison back to the Naivasha service park. Rally leader Oliver Solberg, having battled through the deep mud of Sleeping Warrior in severely reduced visibility after running out of windscreen washer fluid, was forced to stop with an alternator failure. Team-mate Sébastien Ogier also retired on the same road section after suffering a similar issue, bringing an abrupt end to his strong charge and removing the top three Toyota drivers from contention within the space of a single stage and road section.

Those retirements elevated Katsuta into the overall lead. The Japanese driver had taken a measured approach throughout the morning after suffering two punctures on the Elmenteita test and completing the remainder of the loop without any spare tyres. That cautious strategy proved decisive, allowing him to return to service with an advantage of more than one minute.

The afternoon, however, brought little relief for the remaining crews. Hyundai’s Thierry Neuville, who had started the loop in second overall despite managing overheating concerns earlier in the day, was forced to retire on the second pass of Soysambu after sustaining three punctures with no spares remaining.

His retirement promoted team-mate Adrien Fourmaux to second overall. The Frenchman claimed the stage win on Soysambu and focused on preserving his Hyundai i20 N Rally1 through the closing tests, ending the day 1min 25.5sec behind Katsuta.

Sami Pajari completed the leg in third overall despite suffering a high-speed tyre failure on Saturday morning’s Elmenteita stage, which cost the Finn more than five minutes and caused significant bodywork damage. He responded strongly to win the afternoon pass of the same test and move ahead of Hyundai’s Esapekka Lappi, who ended the day in fourth after managing understeer and a front-left puncture during the final loop.

M-Sport Ford World Rally Team drivers Jon Armstrong and Josh McErlean also endured a difficult afternoon. Armstrong was hampered by water temperature warnings and a front-right puncture, while McErlean continued to manage an engine issue before ultimately retiring following the day’s final stage.

In WRC2, Robert Virves completed the day with a commanding class lead of 55.3sec and an impressive fifth place overall. Gus Greensmith held second in the category, while Fabrizio Zaldivar, Andreas Mikkelsen, Diego Dominguez and Daniel Chwist completed the provisional top 10.