M-Sport’s Rich Millener On Safari Survival: Lessons In "Mud Management"

The 2026 WRC Safari Rally Kenya has lived up to its reputation as a car-breaker, and M-Sport Ford team principal Rich Millener is turning a stressful weekend into a masterclass for his rising star, Jon Armstrong. After Armstrong and co-driver Shane Byrne dropped 20 minutes on the Soysambu stage due to a water pressure alarm, Millener defended the crew’s caution while highlighting the steep learning curve of Rally1.

“They got an alarm… and pulled over; which is ultimately the safest thing to do,” Millener noted. However, he pointed out that in the chaos of the Safari, “safe” isn’t always the only option. With mud clogging radiators across the field, Millener suggested that “modulating” the car out of stage mode might have allowed them to carry on without the massive time loss.

The Safari Learning Curve

The incident served as a stark reminder of the technical and environmental challenges unique to Kenya:

The Mud Factor: Intense rains turned stages into “mud baths,” with sludge caking engine bays and triggering phantom or minor cooling alarms.
Communication Breakdowns: With temperamental radios and poor phone reception, crews often have to make split-second mechanical decisions without team input.
Calculating Risk: Millener emphasized that drivers must learn to weigh an alarm against recent events—like a massive water splash—rather than just following a standard procedure.

Despite the setback, M-Sport remains optimistic. Armstrong’s pace has been a revelation this season, and as Millener puts it, applying technical knowledge to extreme conditions “is not something you learn overnight.”

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