Sami Pajari: Winning a special was “not part of the plan!” »

Young people are popular in WRC. If we remove the exceptional Kalle Rovanperä, already a double world champion at 23, from the equation, the last two rookies made a strong impression for their debut in the premier category. After Martins Sesks in Poland and Latvia, it was the turn of Sami Pajari to shine on his land in Finland. And he didn't miss the mark: for his first in Rally1, the young Finn – only 22 years old, it should be remembered – shone with a 4th place finish and above all, a special victory.

“That wasn’t part of the plan!”, he confided after the Rally Finland to the WRC. I thought that the rally would be easier in terms of conditions, so I thought I could have a little more fun. It was so tricky and there was so much to learn that it was almost like testing in racing conditions. This was perhaps the biggest surprise, but it was obviously not the plan to win stages or be so close to the leading drivers. »

A scare, then the light for Sami Pajari

Although he was driving on familiar ground, Sami Pajari managed to keep pace with the best aboard his Toyota Yaris Rally1, by being regularly faster than even more experienced drivers, like Takamoto Katsuta in the same car. However, the Finn's rally almost came to an end: in SS2, the rookie made a mistake and seriously damaged his bike. Fortunately for him, he was able to complete the loop and join the assistance to continue.

😲 @samipajari /@EnniMalkonen in big trouble on Friday morning at @RallyFinland

Live Stream ➡️ https://t.co/bVNpLD93Wo
Live Timing & Live Updates ➡️ https://t.co/bCNvWtxqQ1 #WRC | #SectoRallyFinland 🇫🇮 pic.twitter.com/PFmZIRhQJH

— FIA World Rally Championship (@OfficialWRC) August 2, 2024

“It was a real roller coaster of emotions, underlined the Finn. It's good that it happened like that, we started from very low to finish much higher. This incident was entirely my fault, but I came out of it well and it allowed me to make a good comeback in the following stages. »

Thanks to this great performance, Sami Pajari has placed himself as a candidate for a seat at Toyota in the years to come, and perhaps even 2025. Before that, the Finn wants to concentrate on his main objective: winning the title in WRC2. He currently occupies 2nd place, 28 points behind leader Oliver Solberg ahead of the Acropolis Rally in Greece (September 5-8). “That’s the main goal this season. The title is still within our reach although Oliver did a good job here too. It won't be easy, but it has to be this way! »

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