This season, the main class of the World Rally Championship has seen two rookies: Latvian Martins Sesks and Finland’s hopeful Pajari. Sesks delivered impressive performances in the gravel rallies of Poland and Latvia over the summer, while Pajari gave a convincing display of his skills at Rally Finland in August.
Both men are on the radar of WRC teams. For instance, Toyota’s team principal Jari-Matti Latvala has hinted that Pajari is likely to get more races in a Rally1 car next year.
Next week, both promising drivers will be on the start line at the same time with top-class machinery. However, Sesks’ Ford Puma Rally1 will be without a hybrid unit, while Pajari’s Toyota GR Yaris will benefit from hybrid boost.
In any case, the gravel event in Chile will provide a good indicator of both drivers’ capabilities. For example, Sesks was well acquainted with the special stages of Poland and his home rally in Latvia, whereas Chile is completely unfamiliar territory for him. Pajari competed in Chile last year in a Rally2 car, but the special stages aren’t as fresh in his memory as the ones in Rally Finland.
Pajari is looking forward to having Sesks as a rival. Rally fans have also been eagerly awaiting the chance to see Pajari and Sesks go head-to-head in the main class.
“It’s fun that there’s another young guy in the same competition. Martins and I are good acquaintances. We’ve raced in different categories over the past few years,” Pajari says.
The pair competed simultaneously in the JWRC category of the WRC in 2021. That year, Pajari took the championship, while Sesks finished third.
Three years ago, Pajari and Sesks drove front-wheel-drive Ford Rally4 cars. Now, they are behind the wheels of much more powerful machines.
“It’s fun that now we’re also driving Rally1 cars at the same time. Although the cars are a bit different, we’ll definitely have a good race,” Pajari reflects.
Pajari will also compete in Toyota’s Rally1 car at the Central European Rally in October. This will be the Finn’s first tarmac rally in top-class rally machinery.
“It certainly won’t be the easiest rally to start my asphalt career. There’s always a challenge going on tarmac for the first time, especially in such a demanding race. At least last year, we saw that the weather could be a real game-changer there,” Pajari notes.
“There’s a lot of mud on the roads and challenging conditions. We’re probably looking forward to it more with excitement. We won’t put pressure on ourselves for results there either, nor will we set high targets, but of course, we want to do our best.”
