This is Pajari’s first full season in the top class. His start has been cautious, perhaps overly so, as his gap to the leaders has stretched to three and a half minutes.
However, the young driver was quick to point out that he hadn’t come to Monte-Carlo to perform heroics in such a challenging rally.
“Obviously, we never planned to win this rally. This individual event isn’t the one we’ve specifically been aiming for,” Pajari said.
“In the morning, we posted some decent times, and in the afternoon we had some good split times halfway through the last stage. I think our pace was good enough at times, though there were sections where we just focused on learning.”
In these ever-changing conditions, Pajari is intent on maximizing his experience rather than taking unnecessary risks. His primary goal is to finish the rally and collect as many valuable kilometers as possible.
“I think it’s good to remember that it takes time for everyone to adjust to this level. Few drivers win championships or even rallies in their first years,” Pajari noted.
“It’s only been two days of this season, so I wouldn’t head home just yet.”
It’s clear that as the season progresses, there will be greater expectations for Pajari to step up his pace, particularly in more familiar rallies. He also likely plans to increase his speed over the remaining two days in Monte-Carlo.
“There are obviously many areas where I can improve. However, we’re sticking to the plan we had before the rally started,” he said.
“Next, we’ll need to talk with the team and hear what they think. Some said that tomorrow should be easier conditions-wise, but we’ll see. They said the same about today, but it was still pretty tough.”
