Sami Pajari Targets Dani Sordo in Greece

Sami Pajari has identified Dani Sordo as his main target for the remainder of the 2026 Acropolis Rally Greece after a puncture on Friday effectively ended his hopes of fighting near the front.

The Toyota Gazoo Racing driver sits ninth overall, more than four minutes behind rally leader Thierry Neuville. With Sordo less than 20 seconds ahead, the Spaniard has become Pajari's most realistic objective for the remainder of the event.

"Dani and I are having our own little battle. Before every stage we stop, have a chat and a bit of gossip, then head off to race. We've got our own little local championship going on between us."

Read AlsoSebastien Ogier Blasts FIA Over Acropolis Stage

"Dani is the realistic target now. It would be really good if I could catch him. There's not much else I can do."

Before the midday service, Pajari took more than 10 seconds out of Sordo's advantage after the pair shared a light-hearted moment at a horse paddock near the stage start.

"There was a horse paddock about a kilometre before the stage start. Dani stopped to pet one of the horses, and we ended up comparing our horse backgrounds. Maybe he was still thinking about that afterwards, because we took quite a bit of time out of him."

Although the fight for the leading positions is now out of reach, Pajari admitted there is little left to experiment with on the car because of its advanced stage of development.

"There's really very little left to try. These cars have reached a stage in their development where there aren't many new ideas left. We've already tried so many things that I think the car is in a good place. I don't feel there's any need to change anything."

"The car feels good, so that's not the issue. Road position really does make a difference. Looking at the split times, there are some sections where it doesn't matter much, but on others you're losing huge amounts of time. That's where the gaps come from."