Pajari topped the timesheets on both the opening stage in Laukaa and the final test of the loop in Ruuhimäki. After five stages, the Finnish driver holds third place overall, just 4.5 seconds behind his team-mate and rally leader Kalle Rovanperä.
Earlier this season, Pajari had been focusing – as requested by his team – on gaining experience with the Rally1 car, but now he’s clearly stepped up the pace. Many had begun to question Pajari’s outright speed, but at least on Friday morning, he gave a strong response to his critics.
“It’s felt good. If you take two stage wins from four stages, of course that’s gone well. Still, there were sections – especially in Myhinpää – where something was left on the table. We were a bit too cautious. There were a few places where we could’ve pushed more,” Pajari said.
“But we just didn’t dare to, really. Still, it’s been a pretty strong rally so far.”
The competition remains extremely tight. The top five drivers are covered by just 4.9 seconds, and the gap between the top seven is only 9.7 seconds.
“I kind of expected that the gaps would be very small. It’s pretty wild. You’re trying to push really hard. The margins are mostly tenths of a second, so everything is still wide open,” Pajari summed up.
Pajari drove a Rally1 car for the first time at last year’s Rally Finland. That makes this the only rally where he already has experience with the top-level machinery – something that has made a noticeable difference.
“It definitely feels easier. But in Myhinpää last year, we had heavy rain both times, so I never really got a proper run there. That cost me a bit. There were places where I just didn’t know how to take them flat out,” Pajari explained.
“A bit of rain in the afternoon could make things tricky. But right now, it’s been absolutely brilliant to drive.”
Rally Finland continues on Friday afternoon with repeat runs of the four morning stages, followed by the Harju super special stage to end the day.
