Pajari leads after near-perfect day

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Sami Pajari leads the Junior WRC field after the first full day of stages on #rallyestonia following an intense day of competition.
 
Pajari took seven Wolf Stage Win Points in a row to open up his lead, but it was not all plain sailing for his competitors.
 
Championship leader Martins Sesks had a very difficult opening loop, citing a lack of confidence, struggling to achieve top-five times and entered the mid-day service fifth – almost 40 seconds from leader Pajari. The second loop saw Sesks find his usual pace, fighting for stage wins and climbed back to fourth by the end of the day.
 
Robert Virves delivered a pair of top-three times on the first two stages, but his day came to an early heart-breaking halt on his home #rally, following a driveshaft failure.
 
Martin Koci has demonstrated stage winning pace all-season but has so far failed to finish on the podium in 2021. Although Koci didn't take any stage wins on Saturday, the Slovakian was by no means uncompetitive, posting top-three times and ending the day in third after tussling with Jon Armstrong over second.
 
Armstrong was the only driver to deny Pajari a stage win on Friday's running. The Northern Irishman made a sluggish start, losing close to 15 seconds to leader Pajari in the opening loop. Stage five saw an about-turn in pace, as Armstrong set the split times alight right up until the finish line, narrowly missing out on a stage win by just two tenths of a second. The second loop saw him keep his form, taking the fight to Pajari but coming up short both stages six and seven. Stage eight was Armstrong's moment, claiming his first Wolf Stage Win Point in Estonia with another to follow on stage nine while reducing his deficit to leader Pajari.
 
Sami Pajari has claimed a stage win on all eight of his Junior WRC appearances since his explosive debut in 2019. The Finn claimed the most stage wins on #rallyestonia in 2020, but his push for all-out pace became his undoing. So far on the 2021 edition of #rallyestonia, he delivered well balanced stage times, doing just enough to take precious Wolf Stage Win Points while also maintaining the overall Junior WRC lead. 
 
Elsewhere in Junior WRC, William Creighton is facing an entirely new challenge with #rallyestonia, driving on roads he has no experience of. The Irishman ended the day seventh and 24 seconds from Raul Badiu. Badiu had an uneventful day, with his main target of finishing the #rally following two disappointing results so far. He did show some flashes of speed throughout the day and entered the evening service in sixth, just over 30 seconds behind fifth placed Lauri Joona. Joona was running a steady fourth for most of the day with consistent times but a puncture at the end of stage seven lost him 40 seconds, demoting him fifth. 
 
Maciej Woda, FIA Junior WRC Championship Manager: "I think we are set for a really classic battle tomorrow. Sami came into this #event hitting the ground running but it looks like Jon, Martin and Martins have warmed up now and are matching Sami's pace. This is exactly what we want to see on #rallyestonia, a proper head-to-head battle with drivers trading stage wins. Ok, Sami might have taken most of the stage wins today but it was no walk in the park, there was at least one driver keeping him honest on every stage. What Sami has achieved today should not be undermined either, seven stage wins in a row is an incredibly difficult feat in Junior WRC and is very impressive. Jon has done particularly well here and really proving he is a complete driver, to be taking on Finns and Baltic drivers in their own backyard and beating them is a hard task. Martin Koci is also putting in some impressive times and is showing he has podium-setting pace on every surface we have visited which is a rare talent. I want to apologise to Robert Virves as well, none of us want to see retirements like Robert experienced today but this is one of the cruel realities that is unique to rallying. I am sure when he restarts tomorrow, he will be more determined than ever to show the Estonian fans what he is capable of just like last year."
 
Sami Pajari, Junior WRC #rally Leader: "We tried to do a perfect day with a pace that feels comfortable, the pace is really high so there is not a lot of margin for any mistakes and so far we haven't made any. I think we need to look at the overall results, not just stage by stage, I think there is still a good fight. I think Jon is quite close to us so it will be a really interesting day for us tomorrow."