Pajari was signed for this season to drive Toyota’s Rally1 car in the Japanese manufacturer’s “second team.” Throughout the early season, Pajari has emphasised that he is still in the learning phase of the top category.
So far, the results have reflected that. In the season-opening Rally Monte Carlo, Pajari drove at a rather cautious pace until a Sunday morning off ended his rally. In Rally Sweden, his speed remained reasonably steady, but this time he managed to bring the car to the finish in one piece.
Pajari has so far only competed in a handful of rallies with the four-wheel-drive Rally1 car, but he already feels he has gained valuable experience.
“I learned a lot in Sweden,” Pajari told RallyJournal.com.
“I have now driven this car in conditions that I simply hadn’t experienced before. The biggest thing is having the confidence to unlock its potential and understanding how to drive it in different situations. It’s also valuable to see how others drive so that I can compare and adjust my own approach,” Pajari continued.
This season has brought an additional challenge for Pajari – and for everyone else – as the WRC has switched to a new tyre supplier. Pirelli has been replaced by Hankook, and it has quickly become clear that while the tyre is durable, drivers still need time to adapt.
“These first two rallies have been completely different from each other, and now Kenya will be something entirely different again, even though we’ll still have the same brand of tyres,” Pajari reflected.
“We’ve managed fairly well so far. The tyre is different, but there hasn’t been anything alarming in these first two rallies. Every time we go into a new rally, it’s important to know how to use the tyres in the best possible way. There is still a learning curve and some fine-tuning needed, but overall, we’ve handled it quite well up to this point,” Pajari summed up.
Pajari will next drive Toyota’s Rally1 car in the Safari Rally Kenya at the end of March, a rally he has never competed in before.
