WRC
Pajari takes 24.1sec Paraguay lead into final day
Sami Pajari moved within five stages of a third consecutive WRC victory as Adrien Fourmaux’s Saturday charge set up a thrilling fight for the final podium place at ueno Rally del Paraguay.
The Toyota driver began the day 11.9sec ahead and more than doubled that advantage across nine stages despite a damaged rear wing, an overshoot and constantly changing grip conditions.
Behind him, the biggest move came from Adrien Fourmaux. The Hyundai driver produced five stage wins during a blistering Saturday charge to close from more than 55sec behind Elfyn Evans at the start of the day to just 3.3sec behind the championship leader overnight.
Pajari’s own day was considerably more measured.
With heavy rain forecast, crews began Saturday expecting dramatically different conditions to Friday and several opted for softer, wet-biased set-ups. Instead, the opening stages were largely dry, slippery and increasingly abrasive.
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Pajari steadily stretched his margin over Paddon through the morning before running wide into a ditch on the first pass of Hohenau and ripping the upper plane from the rear wing of his GR Yaris Rally1.
He reached service with 22.8sec in hand and, with the damaged aero replaced, continued to control the rally through the afternoon.
An overshoot on Bella Vista provided another brief scare, but Pajari still outpaced Paddon there and remained composed as tyre management became increasingly important.
“For me this is a different challenge than Estonia and Finland,” said the Finn, who is chasing a hat-trick of WRC victories. “It is more about surviving.”
The day-ending Encarnación Costanera super special brought another reminder that nothing can be taken for granted. Its mixed-surface roads became increasingly greasy as more cars passed, but Pajari safely negotiated the 3.10km test to retain a healthy advantage.
“Many things can go wrong still tomorrow,” he said. “It’s good for the moment. Happy to see that we have been competitive and the car is very reliable once again, but still it’s too early to say anything more.”
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Paddon remains firmly in second on his first top-level WRC gravel outing since 2018.
The New Zealander struggled to recreate the rhythm that carried him into the lead on Friday, but focused increasingly on preserving tyres and avoiding the trouble that had defined the opening leg.
He ends Saturday 32.2sec clear of Evans.
The battle immediately behind him, however, could hardly be tighter.
Fourmaux began the day 55.0sec behind third-placed Evans but immediately signalled his intent. He won Bella Vista Sur and Hohenau during the morning before adding three consecutive stage victories on the afternoon loop.
By the end of SS15 he had reduced Evans’ advantage to 16.0sec and another gain on Trinidad left just 13.1sec between them.
Then came the Costanera.
Fourmaux negotiated the slippery super special 9.8sec faster than Evans, slashing the gap to only 3.3sec with five stages remaining.
“I’m happy with the pace,” Fourmaux had said earlier. “I just need to find the balance for the tyre wear.”
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Evans has remained focused on avoiding unnecessary risks on a rally which has already punished many of the leading crews.
“Adrien, to be fair, has been in a different rally to everyone else,” he acknowledged. “He is risking everything, but let’s see tomorrow.”
Another close fight developed behind them. Oliver Solberg climbed to fifth after Josh McErlean slid wide and took down stage-side advertising on the final test, leaving the pair separated by only 6.3sec overnight.
Home hero Diego Domínguez continues to fly the Paraguayan flag in seventh overall and leads WRC2, despite spending part of the morning driving without his glasses after accidentally leaving them on the roof of his car. His wife sourced a replacement pair from an optician during midday service.
Jon Armstrong holds eighth, with WRC2 rivals Gus Greensmith and Fau Zaldivar completing the top 10.
Sunday’s deciding leg features five stages and 68.16 competitive kilometres, with Pajari now one clean morning away from completing an extraordinary run of three consecutive WRC victories.
