Can Sami Pajari surprise again at Rally Chile?

Make way for youth Rally from Chile! This weekend, we will find two of the most promising talents of rallying in the premier category: Martins Sesks at the wheel of a non-hybrid Ford Puma, and Sami Pajari on the Toyota GR Yaris. The latter makes his return aboard the Rally1 two months after his impressive performance at home, during the Rally Finland.

Last August, the 22-year-old driver pocketed a magnificent 4th place overall, but also a special stage victory. On home soil, the Finn was able to show the full range of his talent, which convinced Toyota to grant him new opportunities in Chile and Central Europe to finish the 2024 season.

And the Japanese clan made a hell of a decision a few weeks ago, by deciding to leave Takamoto Katsuta on the sidelines to put Sami Pajari in his place. The Japanese, home driver and the only Japanese representative in WRC, has had a string of poor performances this season despite the confidence given at the start of the championship to start him in all the rounds within the official team. The choice is strong on the part of Toyota, which has yet to decide on the distribution of its drivers for next season.

Pajari wants to repeat his performance from Finland

For Sami Pajari, for now, it is not 2025 but the present moment that concerns him more. In South America, on a terrain that he already knows and that should suit him, the Finn has great hopes. “I’m really excited to get back behind the wheel of Rally1 in Chile. I hope I can enjoy this event. I raced in Chile for the first time last year in WRC2 and the pace was pretty good. (8th overall, 3rd in WRC2). The roads are nice, a bit similar to some Finnish stages. Most of them are quite flowing and fast, with of course some specific challenges as well.”, he confides from the official WRC website upstream of the Chilean Channel.

“There is traditionally a lot of sweeping, so the first ones to go are going to suffer, Pajari is expected to start in fourth position behind Sesks, Munster and Lappi.. Tyre wear is not really an issue on the first few passes, but some stages are particularly abrasive on the second pass. We will have to take these factors into account, especially with the new stages [for 2024]. It is not a problem in itself, but it is something we have to keep in mind.

The current runner-up in the WRC2 championship has only one goal in mind: to produce a clean copy like his Rally Finland performance last August. “I hope to have a similar weekend to Finland. I’m trying to enjoy and improve with every kilometre, without feeling any pressure in terms of results. The main thing is just to gain more and more experience in this car and spend as much time as possible behind the wheel.” If he manages to bring the car back in one piece and score a good result in Rally1, there is no doubt that Toyota should put him at the top of the list for a seat in 2025...

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