Pajari wins in Finland as Evans extends WRC leadImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Championship leader Elfyn Evans crashed his Toyota on Saturday but was able to continueByAndy GrayBBC Sport NI JournalistPublished1 August 2026Updated 37 minutes agoElfyn Evans extended his lead at the top of the World Rally Championship standings to 30 points as Toyota team-mate Sami Pajari won his home event in Finland.Evans and co-driver Scott Martin finished in third place for Toyota despite a roll on Saturday, which ended their chances of victory, and hold a healthy margin with four rounds remaining.The 37-year-old, who has been a runner-up in the WRC five times, lost two minutes when he ran wide on a corner, rolled and got stuck in a ditch on the 14th stage of 20 in the rally.With the help of spectators – including his dad, former rally driver Gwyndaf, who just happened to be spectating near where he crashed – Evans was able to return to service where Toyota mechanics repairs his GR Yaris. “A surreal set of circumstances, but we owe the guys who fixed the car because without them the rally would have been over,” Evans mentioned after completing the rally.”Thank you very much guys, we always know we can depend on you”.Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Rally Finland is famed for its fast gravel roads and high-speed jumpsAfter he took his first win in Estonia, Pajari made it back-to-back WRC victories to move into second in the standings behind Evans.Pajari was the beneficiary when nine-time champion Sebastien Ogier crashed out of the lead on Saturday’s penultimate stage on a high-speed right-hand corner on the fast gravel roads.Both Ogier and co-driver Julien Ingrassia were taken to hospital after the accident but the French driver posted on social media on Saturday night that the pair would remain in hospital overnight as a precaution but “we both feel okay, which is the most important”.Oliver Solberg, who was battling back pain on the fast jumps on the stages, and co-driver Elliott Edmondson finished in second place to complete a Toyota lock-out of the podium places.The Hyundai duo of Adrien Fourmaux and Thierry Neuville were fourth and fifth, while Takamoto Katsuta and Northern Ireland co-driver Aaron Johnston crashed into trees on the final stage but recovered to finish in sixth place.After the issues for Katsuta and Ogier, Pajari is now second in the standings behind Evans ahead 11th round of the season in Paraguay from 27-30 August.Motorsport Ireland driver Josh McErlean finished the rally in seventh position as the best of the M-Sport Ford drivers.Team-mate Martins Sesks crashed heavily on Saturday to drop out of fifth place, while Jon Armstrong’s chances of a strong result came to an end on Friday after he spun and got stuck in a ditch.”It’s been a crazy weekend in terms of all the crews,” McErlean mentioned.”A lot of new stages, a lot of new pace notes and whenever you come to a rally this fast it is super-difficult to get right. “So we have to be pleased to get through cleanly”.Rally Finland results1. Sami Pajari FIN/Marko Salminen FIN (Toyota) 2:27.358.02. Oliver Solberg SWE/Elliott Edmundson GB (Toyota) +26.7 seconds3. Elfyn Evans GB/Scott Martin GB (Toyota) +1:19.54. Adrien Fourmaux FRA/Alex Coria FRA (Hyundai) +1:35.45. Thierry Neuville BEL/Martijn Wydaeghe BEL (Hyundai) +3:52.56. Takamoto Katsuta JPN/Aaron Johnston IRL (Toyota) +4:18.27. Josh McErlean IRL/Eoin Treacy IRL (M-Sport Ford) +4:32.7….43. Martins Sesks LAT/Francis Renars LAT (M-Sport Ford) +51:52.447. Jon Armstrong IRL/Shane Byrne IRL (M-Sport Ford) +1:21.39.6DNF. Sebastien Ogier FRA/Julian Ingrassia FRA (Toyota)DNF. Esapekka Lappi FIN/Enni Malkonen FIN (Hyundai)World Rally Championship standings (after round 10/14)1. Elfyn Evans GB (Toyota) 201 points2. Sami Pajari FIN (Toyota) 1713. Takamoto Katsuta JPN (Toyota) 1604. Oliver Solberg SWE (Toyota) 1565. Sebastien Ogier FRA (Toyota) 1396. Adrien Fourmaux FRA (Hyundai) 1297. Thierry Neuville BEL (Hyundai) 1258. Esapekka Lappi FIN (Hyundai) 259. Hayden Paddon NZL (Hyundai) 2110. Josh McErlean IRL (M-Sport Ford) 21Related topicsMotorsport
