Tarmal looking to make impact on KNRC debut in Kilifi

Mombasa-based rising star Abdulkadir Tarmal will make his Kenya National Rally Championship (KNRC) debut at Mombasa Motor Club (MMC) Bamba Rally this weekend.

Tarmal who joined the sport earlier in the year is a product of the evergreen MMC training rally initiative which offers upcoming drivers an opportunity to compete on a low budget . 

He has displayed amazing talent in his first year of racing and is hoping to take his career to the next level on his home rally Saturday.

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The 28-year-old businessman who started his racing career at Mombasa Go-Kart will, however, be without his regular navigator Azgar Kassam who will be officiating on the route course this weekend.

Tarmal will nevertheless be accompanied by Nairobi's Anthony Gichohi who is an old hand in the game. 

The Tarmal Cement-sponsored driver possesses an insatiable appetite for speed and is happy to narrates how all the craze started.

"I used to participate in a lot of go-kart races back in the day as a young boy in Mombasa. At the same time, I was always glued to WRC TV during weekends just to catch a glimpse of legend Sébastien Loeb's in his glory days.

Watching Seb in full attack mode inspired me immensely and I knew I would give rallying a try as soon as I could," he explains.

The 28-year-old has for the longest time dreamt of owning a rally car, but his dreams became valid the moment he completed his university studies in the UK some few years back. 

"I have always loved speed, and it will be exciting to try out my machine at national level."

His first 24 hours of racing fame came when he out rightly won the fourth round of the 2022 MMC Coast Rally 4 in Vipingo.

Three months earlier, he had won the Kenya National MMC Autocross 5's Open Class at the same venue, relegating Nairobi based father and son team of Charan and Rajveer Thethy to second and third positions respectively.

"It was an amazing experience winning this club rally, but then again, quite a challenge considering that this was my first night rally. However, I think my co-driver Azgar Kassam was in the ball and deserves a pat on the back for a mission well executed.

There were many DNFs before the night stages but we had a comfortable lead by then, so our aim was to survive the demanding conditions whilst gaining some good night rally seat time."

Tarmal currently runs a Subaru Impreza STI N10 which he acquired from his friend Arjun Pattni, who bought it from its previous owner but only raced with it in one event.

"My win at Vipingo has definitely upped my confidence levels and also goes to show that I am progressing in the sport which motivates me to continue learning and pushing even harder when circumstances permit."

Asked what his long and short term plans in racing are, Tarmal went on, "For now, I want to focus on improving my skills and indeed grasp as many lessons as possible from the senior drivers and team.

I have only done Clubman events organized by MMC this year and I am loving it. The one thing that makes MMC events unique and fun is the fact that majority of the officials are either retired or active rally drivers, so leaning will never stop,depending on which side of the cockpit you sit."

The driver is hoping to do more events across the country next year to see how well he can adapt to new and more demanding conditions.

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Down the line, winning a KNRC event would be an ambitious achievement and he feels that it is achievable in the next four seasons.

He candidly credits his regular navigator Azgar for providing leadership, guidance and support on and off the cockpit.

"Having a navigator you can rely on is key to performing well in a rally environment. Without good notes, it becomes really difficult to push the car to its limits as you lack the requisite confidence and by extension, the capability to ascertain what obstacles lie ahead."