In three weeks, Pajari will make his debut in the top class of the World Rally Championship, competing in the Rally Finland with the Toyota GR Yaris Rally1. This season, Pajari has been performing admirably with Toyota’s Rally2 car in the WRC2 class, but now he will be racing against the “big boys.”
Toyota has ensured that Pajari is well-prepared for his first appearance with the Rally1 car. Pajari tested the car for the first time on Monday and then sat in as a co-driver with Kalle Rovanperä on Toyota’s test area on Tuesday.
But that wasn’t all. Pajari was given two additional days of testing – one on Toyota’s test area and the other on the legendary Lankamaa stage in Laukaa.
Lankamaa is particularly well-known because it is the home area of Juha Kankkunen, whose residence is located on Juha Kankkunen Road. Since Lankamaa is not included in the route for the Rally Finland this year, Pajari was able to utilise the area’s roads for testing.
Despite his limited experience with the Rally1 car, Pajari’s performance looked impressive during the last two days of testing.
Watch the videos of Pajari’s tests below!
In the Finnish WRC round, Pajari’s main goal is to gain mileage with the Rally1 car in competitive conditions, so Toyota does not have high expectations for him. However, if everything falls into place, Pajari could finish surprisingly high in his home WRC rally.
Pajari will next be in action next week at the Latvian WRC round, competing for WRC2 points with the Toyota GR Yaris Rally2. The Rally Finland will take place at the beginning of August.
