Yasin Nasser receives heroic welcome after historic African Rally Championship victory
Entebbe Airport was a scene of celebration as Ugandan rally ace Yasin Nasser and his co-driver Ali Katumba returned home after clinching the 2025 African Rally Championship (ARC) title Uganda’s first in 26 years.
The crew touched down at 1:00 a.m. aboard Uganda Airlines, where they were warmly received by officials from the Federation of Motorsport Clubs of Uganda (FMU), led by Vice President Hajji Hamid Gombe.
An emotional Nasser, still coming to terms with the scale of his achievement, admitted that the victory had not fully sunk in.
“To be honest, until now it has not yet sunk into our heads, but I’m sure with time it will. For now, we are still in shock that we actually won this,” Nasser said.
Nasser and Katumba’s triumph makes them only the second Ugandan crew to win the ARC title, following the late Charles Muhangi, who in 1999 became the first black African to win the championship while driving a Subaru.
For FMU Vice President Gombe, witnessing Nasser’s feat was deeply fulfilling.
“This is mission accomplished. To have an ARC winner under my administration as vice president of FMU makes me very happy both as an administrator and as a Ugandan,” Gombe remarked.
The 2025 ARC season was a grueling battle, with Nasser fending off stiff competition from Kenya’s rising star, Samman Vohra. Heading into the final round, Nasser only needed to finish behind Vohra to secure the crown. Unlike previous years when the title was often decided early, this year’s championship went down to the wire, making Nasser’s victory all the more memorable.
Uganda now celebrates a return to continental rally glory a moment that rekindles memories of Muhangi’s legendary triumph and cements Nasser and Katumba’s place in African motorsport history.
