Manveer Birdi is on the brink of securing the 2026 Tanzania National Rally Championship title, leading the standings with 140 points, 21 points ahead of defending champion Ahmed Huwel. The championship will be decided at the Asas Guru Nanak Rally in Arusha on November 15. Birdi needs only a top-eight finish to claim the national crown, while Huwel must secure a strong result and hope his rival suffers a setback.
The 160-kilometre event, to be staged around Makuyuni, will provide the final opportunity for Huwel to overturn the championship standings. According to the latest overall driver standings after four championship rounds, Birdi has accumulated 140 points, while Huwel has 119 points. Birdi's priority will be to protect his points advantage, avoid unnecessary risks and ensure he finishes inside the required top eight.
Birdi's campaign has been built on consistency and important victories, including wins in Morogoro at the Mkwawa Leaf Rally in September and the Serengeti Rally in October. At the Mkwawa Leaf Rally, Birdi, navigated by Zubayr Piredina in a Skoda Fabia, clocked one hour, 14 minutes and 51 seconds to beat Huwel, who finished in 1:16:20.
Birdi strengthened his championship position at the Serengeti Rally, which also hosted the final round of the 2026 African Rally Championship (ARC). Driving the Skoda Fabia Evo alongside Piredina, he finished second overall in the continental competition in 2:03:11.5, just 33.7 seconds behind Kenya's Karan Patel. More importantly for his domestic ambitions, Birdi won the NRC classification and collected five additional points after recording the fastest time on the final Power Stage.
Huwel also competed in the Serengeti Rally, finishing fourth in the ARC classification and second in the domestic NRC standings. The result left him needing a stronger performance in Arusha to keep his championship defence alive. However, the Iringa-based driver has reasons to believe he can still mount a challenge, given his experience of winning last season's national championship and his ability to compete at the front of domestic and continental events.
The overall standings also reveal the competitiveness of this year's championship, with Harinder Deere third with 91 points, while Waleed Nahdi and Kartic Valambia share fourth position on 76. Marey Kithiri follows on 70, with Gurpal Sandhu seventh on 66. Beyond the title contest, the Arusha event is expected to attract at least 25 entries, according to Arusha Motor Sports Club secretary Monica Lyimo.
The closing round therefore presents contrasting objectives for the leading contenders. Birdi is chasing the consistency required to complete his campaign with a championship, while Huwel needs an outstanding performance to prevent the title from changing hands. For Birdi, the mathematics are favourable, but rallying remains unpredictable, with mechanical problems, navigation errors and accidents capable of changing a competition's direction.
Key points
- Birdi leads the 2026 Tanzania National Rally Championship standings with 140 points.
- A top-eight finish for Birdi would secure the national crown.
- The Asas Guru Nanak Rally in Arusha will decide the championship on November 15.
