Sami Pajari Unfazed by WRC Title Fight: More Time Off Would Be Nice

Sami Pajari is in superb form on the World Rally Championship stages this year. After a disappointing Rally Monte Carlo, the Toyota Finn has been at his best: seven podium finishes and impressive victories in the last two events.

Wins at Rally Estonia and Rally Finland have lifted Pajari to second in the standings, just 30 points behind championship-leading team-mate Elfyn Evans. A genuine title fight is on the cards with several rounds remaining.

However, Pajari has no plans to suddenly adopt a more aggressive approach. "I don't see that I can really change my approach or tactics any more – whether we're in the fight or not," he said. "So far, we've approached it by trying to do our best in every rally. That's brought us a lot of podiums this year and a couple of wins. So things have gone damn well for us, and it's great to be in the championship fight. But it doesn't really dictate how we go about things – we'll just do our best again."

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Uncertainty still looms over the rest of the WRC season. It remains unclear whether three or four rounds will be held. The fate of the planned season finale in Saudi Arabia is unresolved due to the security situation in the Middle East. If cancelled, two options remain: end the season at Rally Sardinia in early October or find a replacement event.

"The situation in the world is sometimes such that unexpected factors come into play. But we'll see what the situation actually is," Pajari said. "But maybe it would actually be quite nice if the season ended in Sardinia. Then we'd get a bit more time off for once," he quipped.

The next round takes place in Paraguay next week, where Pajari will aim to maintain his momentum and keep the pressure on Evans.