Sami Pajari turned high-speed Finnish gravel into a historic personal breakthrough, claiming back-to-back World Rally Championship victories on home soil while closing the gap on championship leader Elfyn Evans. Following his career-first WRC win in Estonia, Pajari capitalized on late-stage drama in Finland to anchor a Toyota podium lockout and elevate himself into second place in the drivers' standings.
The decisive turn in Finland arrived on Saturday's penultimate stage. Nine-time world champion Sébastien Ogier held the overall lead before crashing heavily on a high-speed right-hand corner. Both Ogier and co-driver Julien Ingrassia were taken to hospital for precautionary checks and remained overnight, though Ogier later confirmed on social media that both felt okay. Ogier's sudden exit opened the door for Pajari to take the lead and pilot his Toyota GR Yaris to a landmark victory.
Spectator Rescue and Toyota's Podium Lockout
Championship leader Elfyn Evans endured his own dramatic survival test to keep his title push intact. On the 14th of 20 stages, the 37-year-old Welshman ran wide on a corner, rolled his GR Yaris, and landed stuck in a ditch, losing two minutes. Evans and co-driver Scott Martin were rescued by onlookers—including Evans' father, former rally driver Gwyndaf Evans, who was spectating nearby. The bystanders helped free the car, allowing Evans to reach service where Toyota mechanics rebuilt the machine.
"A surreal set of circumstances, but we owe the guys who fixed the car because without them the rally would have been over," Evans said. "Thank you very much guys, we always know we can depend on you."
Evans recovered to finish third, behind teammate Oliver Solberg and co-driver Elliott Edmondson, who brought their Toyota home in second place, 26.7 seconds behind Pajari, despite Solberg battling back pain caused by the heavy compression on Finland's famous high-speed jumps.
| Sami Pajari / Enni Mälkönen | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 | Winner | tr>td>2Oliver Solberg / Elliott Edmondson | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 | +26.7s | tr>td>3Elfyn Evans / Scott Martin | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 | Podium Finish | tr>td>4Adrien Fourmaux / Alexandre Coria | Hyundai i20 N Rally1 | 4th Place | tr>td>5Thierry Neuville / Martijn Wydaeghe | Hyundai i20 N Rally1 | +3:52.5 | tr>td>6Takamoto Katsuta / Aaron Johnston | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 | Recovered |
Hyundai and M-Sport Attrition
Hyundai's tandem of Adrien Fourmaux and Thierry Neuville took fourth and fifth overall, with Neuville finishing 3 minutes and 52.5 seconds adrift of Pajari. Takamoto Katsuta and co-driver Aaron Johnston suffered a late incident when they crashed into trees on the final stage, but managed to navigate their damaged Toyota to the finish in sixth position.
M-Sport Ford encountered a grueling weekend on the fast Finnish roads. Motorsport Ireland driver Josh McErlean delivered the team's best result in seventh overall, while teammates Martins Sesks and Jon Armstrong ran into severe trouble. Sesks crashed heavily from fifth place on Saturday to end up 43rd (+51:52.4), and Armstrong spun into a ditch on Friday, dropping to 47th (+1:21:39.6).
"It's been a crazy weekend in terms of all the crews," McErlean noted. "A lot of new stages, a lot of new pace notes and whenever you come to a rally this fast it is super-difficult to get right."
Championship Stakes Heading to Paraguay
Pajari's home triumph continues a remarkable surge across fast gravel events. Earlier in the season, Evans built his command of the championship on endurance, sweeping to victory at Safari Rally Kenya ahead of Ott Tänak (+1m09.9s) and Neuville, even while overcoming a 360-degree spin and an intercom failure that forced a helmet swap. In Kenya, Evans had stretched his lead to 36 points over Neuville before Pajari began his back-to-back run in Estonia and Finland.
With four rounds remaining in the season, Evans holds a 30-point lead over Pajari as the championship heads to South America for the 11th round in Paraguay from August 27-30. Pajari's elevation to second in the standings places direct pressure on Evans, setting up a high-stakes duel between Toyota teammates as the Rally1 battle moves to new terrain.
Sources
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- dirtfish.com original
- bbc.co.uk original
- models118.com original
