Sami Pajari made World Rally Championship history with a third consecutive victory at Rally Paraguay, cutting Elfyn Evans’ championship lead to 20 points.
After taking a maiden win in Estonia followed by triumph in Finland, Pajari and co-driver Marko Salminen managed to tame Paraguay’s abrasive, constantly changing clay/gravel stages. The Toyota pairing claimed an impressive victory by 25.8s from Hyundai’s Hayden Paddon, who made his first top-tier WRC gravel start since 2018.
Hyundai’s Adrien Fourmaux claimed the final place on the podium after overhauling championship leader Elfyn Evans on the final day of action.
“Amazing. Big thanks to the team once again. It was not an easy rally, not easy for the drivers, but nevertheless not easy for the team. And building such a reliable car is the key for the success. So really, really proud moment, really, really happy. It feels really, really good, and I don’t know how we are exactly on the points, but we are still trying to do the best we can in the championship, which is also not going too bad at the moment, so happy for that”, said Pajari, who became the first driver to score three consecutive WRC wins immediately after taking a maiden victory.
Oliver Solberg, Elliott Edmondson, Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT Toyota GR Yaris Rally1
Photo by: Toyota Racing
Crews predicted that Rally Paraguay would be all about survival and the event certainly lived up to the billing. Long stage loops, rough roads and high temperatures contributed to a series of punctures and tyre delaminations on Friday as Hankook’s rubber struggled to cope with the conditions.
Heavy rain had been expected to cause even more chaos on Saturday and Sunday but instead of hitting the stages a storm struck the Encarnacion service park on Saturday morning, which destroyed several temporary structures.
While Pajari ultimately triumphed it was Toyota team-mate Oliver Solberg that grabbed the early lead on Friday morning. However, the Swede’s victory hopes were severely dented in stage three. A sudden loss of engine power prompted an overshoot into a ditch which then required spectators to push-start the car. A second stoppage followed due to a right rear puncture which meant four minutes were lost in the stage.
Solberg was among a series of drivers to hit trouble on Friday. Three Rally1 crews had retired from the day after only three stages. Toyota’s Takamoto Katsuta rolled early in the opening stage, while Thierry Neuville was forced to stop with broken rear suspension after suffering a puncture.
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Last year’s winner Sébastien Ogier also joined the retirement list. The Frenchman lost time to a left-rear puncture in the opening stage, before picking up a second after clipping a bank in stage two. The impact caused damage to his front left suspension which ultimately forced the nine-time world champion to stop in stage three, the same stage where Hyundai’s Adrien Fourmaux and M-Sport duo Jon Armstrong and Josh McErlean also encountered tyre issues.
The wild start to Friday left Hyundai’s Hayden Paddon in the lead, the Kiwi leading a WRC rally for the first time since Portugal 2018. Paddon led for two stages until he became the next to suffer a puncture in stage six, which handed Evans the lead.
Evans’ time in the lead was, however, short-lived due to a right rear tyre delamination in stage seven. Evans opted against stopping to change the wheel, but a minute was lost. The stage proved particularly brutal as Fourmaux also sustained a double rear puncture while McErlean also stopped to change a wheel.
Pajari was among the few to avoid tyre dramas on Friday but was hampered by a water leak on his GR Yaris in the morning loop. But after tyre dramas struck Evans and Paddon in stage seven, the Finn took an 11.9s lead over Paddon into Saturday.
Diego Dominguez, Rogelio Peñate, Toyota Gr Yaris Rally2
Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool
Once in the lead, Pajari extended his advantage through Saturday’s stages, which remained dry, much to the surprise of the teams that opted for wet-weather set ups in anticipation of heavy rain. The Finn did however survive an overshoot and scare in stage 11 when he ripped off part of his GR Yaris’ rear wing after running wide into a ditch.
Pajari took a 24.1s lead over Paddon into the final day but never seemed under pressure as he went on to take a win that has cut the gap to championship leader Evans to 20 points.
Solberg recovered from his Friday delays to finish fifth, ending the rally with an identical overall time in the Super Sunday standings with Ogier, who had a half spin in the final stage. The maximum five points went to Ogier, who won the opening stage on Sunday.
Joshua McErlean, Eoin Treacy, M-Sport Ford World Rally Team Ford Puma Rally1
Photo by: M-Sport
M-Sport-Ford’s Josh McErlean equalled his best WRC finish in sixth, despite ending the rally with a makeshift gear lever held together with a spanner. Team-mate Jon Armstrong retired from seventh on stage 20 with suspension failure.
Armstrong’s issue handed the position to WRC2 class winner and home favourite Diego Domínguez, who claimed a well-received WRC2 win on home soil. The top 10 was rounded out by Gus Greensmith and Alejandro Galanti.
Sunday wasn’t without dramas as the returning Katsuta and co-driver Aaron Johnston rolled for a second time, this time in Stage 21 which was red flagged and subsequently cancelled. The pair were reported to be okay but were taken to hospital for precautionary checks.
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– The Autosport.com Team
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