WRC
Six points short, but Pajari sees more to come
Sami Pajari believes learning when to take more risks could unlock another level in 2027 after ending his breakthrough FIA World Rally Championship campaign just six points short of the title.
Pajari and co-driver Marko Salminen finished third in the final standings after a season in which they claimed three victories and nine podiums - more visits to the rostrum than any other crew.
That consistency carried Pajari into Rally Italia Sardegna as Elfyn Evans’ closest challenger, 17 points behind the championship leader, and he remained mathematically in contention until the final day.
Although the title ultimately went to Evans and Scott Martin after a dramatic Wolf Power Stage showdown with Oliver Solberg, Pajari was able to reflect on a season that far exceeded where he had been just 12 months earlier.
“We lost it by only six points, so it was still very, very close,” the 24-year-old said.
“Still, we had a good season and we need to be happy. Three wins, nine podiums – more than anyone else, really. That’s incredible.
“After the terrible Monte Carlo, on almost every rally we had competitive pace. Many times we were on the podium, many times we were close to the win.
“So I think we need to be very, very happy. It’s only my second season [at the top level]. At the same time, Elfyn has been around for 10 years or more. Oliver was first in Rally1 when I was in Rally4.
© WRC
“I still feel I am young. I still have time to do some nice things myself.”
Pajari’s campaign gathered momentum almost immediately after his Monte-Carlo retirement. Podiums followed in Sweden and Kenya before he finished second in Croatia and third in the Canary Islands, establishing a level of consistency which would eventually become one of the defining features of his season.
The major breakthrough arrived in Estonia in July. Pajari led from start to finish, won 12 stages and claimed his maiden WRC victory by 19.5sec over Solberg.
He followed it immediately with victory on home soil in Finland and then won again in Paraguay, making Pajari and Salminen the first crew in WRC history to claim their maiden three victories consecutively.
That sequence cut Evans’ championship advantage from 33 points after Estonia to just 20 after Paraguay and turned Pajari from an emerging Rally1 frontrunner into a genuine title contender.
There were still points left on the table, however, and that is where Pajari believes his next step can be made.
The Finn pointed specifically towards Sundays, where the current WRC scoring system offers five points for the Super Sunday classification in addition to another five on the Wolf Power Stage.
Pajari topped Super Sunday for the first time in Sardinia and believes the experience showed he can afford to be more aggressive without crossing the line.
“I think one of the things is simply sometimes taking more risks,” he explained.
“Even today, we saw on some stages that I was taking a little bit more risk. For the first time, I won Super Sunday. So once again I proved to myself that I can be fast on Sundays.
“And even though I was fast, I wasn’t crashing.
“So I need to be more confident and push even harder.”
Finland triumph was a highlight of Pajari's campaign
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Pajari acknowledged that the value of Sunday bonus points had played a part in the eventual championship outcome but refused to dwell on alternative calculations.
“You can always find different ways to think about it,” he said. “The regulations are what they are at the moment, and that’s the way we go.”
Instead, his immediate reaction was to recognise what Evans and Martin had achieved.
“I need to be very, very happy for Elfyn and Scott,” he said. “I think it has been a long time coming for them.
“In a way, I feel that Oliver and I still have time. We are young, so we still have time to chase some titles in the future, which I think we most likely will both do.”
