Sami Pajari and Enni Mälkönen continue their battle for points in the WRC2 series this upcoming weekend under the blazing sun of Sardinia. Competing with Printsport Racing’s Toyota GR Yaris Rally2, the Finnish duo heads into the event with confidence following successful tests and hard-learned awareness of the rally’s grueling nature from previous years.
For Sami Pajari and Enni Mälkönen, the Sardinian WRC marks their third points-earning event this season. They secured second place on Sweden’s snowy stages in winter, but their previous outing in Portugal ended in a retirement after several challenging stages. Outside the points-scoring rounds, they’ve kept up their pace in the season opener at Monte Carlo and in the springtime rally in Croatia.
This year’s hot Finnish weather has been an ideal preparation for the Sardinian WRC rally, which is forecasted to have temperatures exceeding 30 degrees Celsius during the event. Pajari recalls, “When I think of Sardinia, it is pizza, gelato, and the heat that come to mind first. We had our first Rally2 start at the WRC level here two years ago, and it was one of the hottest events in WRC history, with temperatures soaring above 35 degrees Celsius.”
A unique feature of this year’s rally in the northern part of the island is the condensed schedule. The reconnaissance days are Wednesday and Thursday, with the shakedown driven on Friday morning. The rally itself starts on Friday afternoon. There are eight distinct stages, each driven twice, totaling sixteen stages. Friday includes four special stages (77.82 km), Saturday eight stages (149 km), and Sunday concludes with four stages (39.3 km).
“The route is quite similar to previous years. This year, the service park is back in Alghero on the west, whereas last year we were in Olbia on the east coast. There are no sections I haven’t driven before. I first competed here in the Junior WRC in 2020 and have been here annually since 2022, making this my fourth time overall,” Pajari explains.
“We did the pre-event tests on Monday near the Tempio Pausania stage, on slow, narrow roads. Only minor tweaks were made to the car, which performed very well in Portugal. The terrain here is somewhat slower and more technical compared to Portugal. I’ve always liked this rally a lot, so I’m really happy to be rallying here again.”
The Sardinian rally week is one day shorter than usual, with half a day less of action, but due to the rally’s demanding nature, drivers are unlikely to find it noticeably easier. “Nothing comes easy in this rally. There are practically only two main services, on Friday and Saturday evenings, with just tire change services otherwise. The new concept looks fun, and I’m really curious to see how it works. After Monday’s tests, we had a rest day, which was nice to relax before the intense two days of reconnaissance,” Pajari shares.