Sami Pajari Dominates Rally Estonia with Sweep of Friday’s Stages

Toyota’s Sami Pajari secured an early lead at Rally Estonia after an impressive clean sweep of stage wins on Friday afternoon.

Pajari delivered a standout performance on Estonia’s gravel roads, completing the opening loop of three stages without a single loss, ahead of last year’s winner Oliver Solberg by 4.1 seconds.

“The conditions are excellent, and I’m thoroughly enjoying the experience. It’s a fantastic location to compete,” Pajari remarked, starting from fourth on the road.

Solberg, Pajari’s closest competitor, struggled with his GR Yaris Rally1, admitting to a lack of connection with the vehicle. He moved into second place after SS2 (Karaski 1), trailing Pajari by 0.8 seconds.

Oliver Solberg, Elliott Edmondson, Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT Toyota GR Yaris Rally1

Photo by: Toyota Racing

Solberg expressed frustration, stating, “The car doesn’t feel right. I’m doing my best, but it’s simply not sufficient at the moment.”

Adrien Fourmaux led Hyundai’s effort but narrowly avoided a crash during SS2 after navigating a hazardous jump that damaged his i20 N Rally1.

“We have strong pace, but I believe we could perform better,” Fourmaux noted, finishing 4.9 seconds behind Pajari.

Thierry Neuville faced balance issues with his i20 N but completed the loop fourth, 3.5 seconds ahead of Sebastian Ogier.

“We’re barely holding onto the road, lacking the grip needed to maneuver effectively,” Neuville explained. “My feet were also stuck to the pedals due to hot tarmac, which was uncomfortable.”

Ogier, 14.6 seconds behind, added, “This is just the start of the rally. We’ll do our best and assess our position tonight.”

Joshua Mcerlean, Eoin Treacy, M-Sport Ford World Rally Team Ford Puma Rally1

Photo by: M-Sport

Josh McErlean impressed for M-Sport Ford, finishing sixth (+23.0s) ahead of Takamoto Katsuta (+24.1s), Esapekka Lappi (+26.7s), and Elfyn Evans (+27.5s), who faced the worst conditions as the first car on the road.

Martin Santaes impressed in 10th, 1.3 seconds behind Evans, despite a 20-second penalty for a late exit from service due to shakedown damage. M-Sport Ford’s Jon Armstrong completed the Rally1 field in 11th after a 31-second loss from a front-left puncture repaired mid-stage.

In WRC2, Estonia’s Robert Virves led Finland’s Mikko Heikkila by 0.2 seconds, with Patrick Enok in third, 3.2 seconds back.

Crews will repeat the trio stages this afternoon before concluding the day’s leg with a super special.

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