This season, Salminen has been reading pace notes for 27-year-old Japanese driver Yuki Yamamoto. Yamamoto is one of the drivers Toyota is aiming to develop into a successor for Takamoto Katsuta.
“I joined his side for the first time in last year’s Rally Japan, and we created the pace notes together. He’s an easy guy to work with. He understands things and learns from them as you explain. Now, after having driven three rallies together, there’s been a consistent upward trajectory,” Salminen told RallyJournal.com
At SM Tuuri Ralli a little over a week ago, Salminen and Yamamoto achieved a remarkable fourth place, which is by far the best result in Yamamoto’s career. This year marks the first time Yamamoto is driving a car in the Rally2 classification, having previously competed in a Rally4 car.
“He’s already shown great speed. The project is exciting, and there’s plenty to do with lots of testing and driving,” Salminen reflects.
Previously, Salminen has worked with the likes of Juha Salo, Teemu Suninen, and Sami Pajari. Working with Japanese drivers is also familiar to him, having spent the previous two years with Nao Otake and guiding Katsuta in his early years.
“We do what we’re told. Of course, we always put our all into whatever we do. It’s a nice project to be involved in. We’ve managed to complete all stages in the Arctic Lapland Rally and Rally Sweden, which certainly means something. Driving through rallies increases speed by itself,” Salminen thinks.
Besides pace noting, Salminen also guides and coaches Yamamoto. While Mikko Hirvonen and Jouni Ampuja primarily handle the coaching in Toyota’s Japanese drivers’ project, Salminen’s vast experience also offers valuable insights.
“I’ve been doing this job for so long and been in almost every role helping out mates, so I believe I have a pretty good overall view. I think I can identify areas that need attention, which we then discuss together. I believe I have some ideas,” Salminen concludes.
