Into the record books with a hat-trick: Pajari wins third World Championship round in a row

Together with his co-driver Marko Salminen, Pajari also mastered the third day of the gruelling Rally Paraguay with a masterful performance. With his victory in the eleventh round of the World Championship, Pajari has improved his chances of winning the Drivers’ World Championship.

With three World Championship rounds remaining before the end of the season, the 24-year-old is now just 20 points behind the leader, Elfyn Evans, having trailed by 30 points before the Paraguay rally.

Alle guten Dinge sind drei: Sami Pajari triumphiert auch in Paraguay

Foto: Red Bull

“Simply incredible. It wasn’t an easy rally, neither for the drivers nor for the team. Having such a reliable car was the key to success. This is a really, really proud moment, and I’m really, really happy,” said a delighted Pajari, commenting on his latest success.

At the finish, Pajari was 25.8 seconds ahead of the New Zealand Hyundai driver Hayden Paddon. With his exceptional performance, the New Zealander proved to be ‘the’ big surprise of the rally. With his second place, the Kiwi also managed to postpone the decision on the Manufacturers’ World Championship at least until the next round in Chile.

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During the rally, Pajari had already taken the lead on a chaotic Friday. Recurring tyre problems and incidents involving several top drivers had shaken up the order in the standings several times. On Saturday, Pajari had a ‘big moment’ when, travelling at high speed on the Hohenau special stage, he grazed the roadside barrier and damaged his rear wing – though this did nothing to slow his rapid progress.

Pajari went into the final day with a 24.1-second lead over Paddon. On the opening special stage in Encarnacion, his lead initially shrank to 21.5 seconds as he did not want to take any unnecessary risks.

Hyundai-Pilot Hayden Paddon: Die Überraschung in Paraguay

Foto: Red Bull

The Toyota driver then extended his lead again on the following two special stages and finally secured overall victory on the concluding Wolf Power Stage.

Behind the leading duo, Adrien Fourmaux delivered one of the best driving performances of the weekend and snatched third place from championship leader Elfyn Evans right at the end.

The Hyundai driver had been 1 minute 51.3 seconds behind the leader after Friday’s tyre problems, but launched a relentless comeback on Saturday. The Frenchman cut the gap from more than 55 seconds to Evans to just 3.3 seconds.

Adrien Fourmaux mit ambitioniertem Einsatz noch aufs Podium

Foto: XPB

The Frenchman continued to apply intense pressure on Sunday, eventually crossing the line 5.1 seconds ahead of Evans.

“It was an incredible weekend. We managed to put up a very, very good fight to claw back the minute needed for a podium place,” commented Fourmaux.

Evans had to settle for fourth place, but retains the lead in the championship with 216 points, whilst Pajari is now second on 196 points. Oliver Solberg lies in third place on 175 points after finishing fifth in the overall standings. The Swede won the final Wolf Power Stage.

Solberg’s chances had already been dashed on Friday when his engine cut out whilst braking whilst he was in the lead. He lost four minutes as spectators first had to push his Toyota and he later suffered a puncture.

Takamoto Katsuta: Schwerer Unfall auf der vorletzten Wertungsprüfung

Foto: Red Bull

Josh McErlean brought his M-Sport Ford home in sixth place after an eventful final day. A broken gear lever had to be temporarily spliced together using a spanner.

The penultimate 21st special stage (Artigas) was abandoned following a serious accident involving Takamoto Katsuta and his co-driver Aaron Johnston.

As a precaution, the Toyota duo were airlifted by helicopter to a local hospital for medical examination.

In WRC2, Diego Dominguez (Toyota) celebrated a dream victory in front of his Paraguayan fans. He had held the lead in the category since Friday.

Josh McErlean im M-Sport Ford auf Platz sechs

Foto: XPB

In the overall standings, the local hero finished in seventh place. Behind him, 22.7 seconds adrift, was Toyota driver Gus Greensmith.

Local driver Alejandro Galanti (Toyota) completed the WRC2 podium. Fourth place went to the Australian Skoda driver Taylor Gill.

The World Rally Championship remains in South America and will hold its twelfth round in Chile from 10 to 13 September.

With the Drivers’ Championship remaining extremely close following the round in Paraguay, Toyota can secure their tenth Manufacturers’ title at the second attempt in Chile after their first ‘match point’. The Japanese team lead with 554 points, ahead of Hyundai on 381, and need just one more point to clinch the championship.