Sami Pajari Finishes First on the Opening Day of the Paraguay Rally

Sami Pajari finished the Rally of Paraguay at the front with an 11.9-second margin over Hayden Paddon, a gap built between punctures and two retirements that took Sébastien Ogier and Thierry Neuville out of contention from the very first stages.

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The red clay of Encarnación hit everyone hard. A water leak forced Pajari's Toyota to manage temperatures on the opening stage, and the team fixed the issue during the midday service without the Finn losing ground in the overall classification. Elfyn Evans and Paddon were not as fortunate. Both suffered tire delaminations on Yerbatera, the longest stage of the rally at 33.88 kilometers, which was run twice during the day. Evans reached the finish of the second pass with the rim exposed after his right-rear tire completely disintegrated.

Adrien Fourmaux won four of the eight stages contested and finished 1 minute 51 seconds behind the lead despite losing nearly 90 seconds changing a tire on the first Yerbatera run and completing the afternoon repeat with both rear tires deflated. Josh McErlean finished fifth after being 9.8 seconds off the lead and stopping to change a wheel on that same stage.

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The retirements weigh heavily on two of the names who were fighting for the championship before this round. Takamoto Katsuta rolled just two kilometers into the rally, on a high-speed entry into the forest that he could not control. Neuville broke the left-rear suspension on the same stage. Ogier, who arrived with a different physical and mental state after what happened in Finland, lost control over a crest, hit a bank, and damaged the front suspension; the team attempted a temporary repair that did not hold, and the Frenchman retired on the third stage of the day. Both Toyota drivers are preparing to restart on Saturday under the rally regulations.

Before this round began, Evans arrived at Paraguay with a 30-point lead over Pajari in the drivers' standings, and the top five positions in the championship were occupied by Toyota drivers. Pajari came into this race having won Estonia and Finland consecutively, and those two victories made him a direct rival to the Welshman in the title fight. What happened on Friday is just a preview of eight stages out of twenty-two, with Evans third 56.3 seconds behind and Pajari in the lead, and the toughest part of the route is still to come. Organizers are anticipating rain on Saturday, and that condition could reshuffle the standings without warning, as happened in the 2025 edition, when Sunday's rain turned a relatively controlled rally into a grip lottery.

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The other matter at stake is the manufacturers' championship. Toyota arrived at Paraguay with a 174-point lead over Hyundai after winning nine of the first ten rounds of the year, and needed just six more points to mathematically clinch the title at this rally. If they achieve it, it would be their sixth consecutive title and the tenth in their history, a number that ties the all-time record held by Lancia. Ogier, whose chances in the drivers' championship were virtually closed by the Finland accident, is now racing with that collective objective as a priority, on the same rally he won on his debut in 2025.

Hyundai relies on Neuville, Fourmaux, and Paddon to delay that outcome. Paddon returned to a gravel WRC event for the first time since 2018 and led the overall classification midway through the day, something he had not achieved since Portugal that same year. "I think everyone had problems, so if we manage to get through two stages with punctures and still stay near the front, we had both bad and good luck at the same time," said the New Zealander, who held on with a delaminated left-rear tire on the final stage to keep second place.

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Pajari summed up the day with caution. "It's a lottery whether you get the puncture or not, I need to be happy with how we handled it," he said, adding that he considers the upcoming stages the toughest of the rally. Fourmaux, for his part, insisted that he will not give up despite the accumulated gap.

Saturday adds 137.34 kilometers spread over nine stages, with the debut of Bella Vista Sur as a completely new test and a night super special on the Encarnación riverfront to close out the second competitive day before Sunday.

WRC Overall Friday - Ueno Rally Del Paraguay 2026

POS	#	driver/COdriver	team	brand	car	time
1	5	Sami PAJARI Marko SALMINEN	Toyota Gazoo Racing Wrt2	Toyota	Gr Yaris Rally1	1:28:28.7
2	20	Hayden PADDON John KENNARD	Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team	Hyundai	I20 N Rally1	+ 11.9
3	33	Elfyn EVANS Scott MARTIN	Toyota Gazoo Racing Wrt	Toyota	Gr Yaris Rally1	+ 56.3
4	16	Adrien FOURMAUX Alexandre CORIA	Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team	Hyundai	I20 N Rally1	+ 1:51.3
5	55	Joshua MCERLEAN Eoin TREACY	M-sport Ford World Rally Team	Ford	Puma Rally1	+ 2:23.1
6	99	Oliver SOLBERG Elliott EDMONDSON	Toyota Gazoo Racing Wrt	Toyota	Gr Yaris Rally1	+ 3:33.3
7	95	Jon ARMSTRONG Shane BYRNE	M-sport Ford World Rally Team	Ford	Puma Rally1	+ 6:16.2
8	1	Sébastien OGIER Vincent LANDAIS	Toyota Gazoo Racing Wrt	Toyota	Gr Yaris Rally1	+ 64:37.5
9	11	Thierry NEUVILLE Martijn WYDAEGHE	Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team	Hyundai	I20 N Rally1	+ 71:54.9
10	18	Takamoto KATSUTA Aaron JOHNSTON	Toyota Gazoo Racing Wrt	Toyota	Gr Yaris Rally1	+ 79:09.0
11	27	Diego DOMÍNGUEZ Rogelio PEÑATE	Diego Domínguez	Toyota	Gr Yaris	+ 2:36.0
12	26	Gus GREENSMITH Jonas ANDERSSON	Gus Greensmith	Toyota	Gr Yaris	+ 3:15.4
13	32	Marco BULACIA José MURADO	Marco Bulacia	Toyota	Gr Yaris	+ 4:01.4
14	30	Romet JÜRGENSON Siim OJA	M-sport Ford World Rally Team	Ford	Fiesta Mk Ii	+ 4:36.9
15	25	Fau ZALDIVAR Marcelo DER OHANNESIAN	Fau Zaldivar	Skoda	Fabia Rs	+ 4:39.8
16	34	Alejandro GALANTI Marcelo TOYOTOSHI	Alejandro Galanti	Toyota	Gr Yaris	+ 4:45.5
17	29	Taylor GILL Daniel BRKIC	Toksport Wrt 2	Skoda	Fabia Rs	+ 5:00.1
18	35	Miguel ZALDIVAR Luis ALLENDE	Miguel Zaldivar	Skoda	Fabia Rs	+ 6:52.3
19	36	Gustavo SABA Pablo OLMOS	Gustavo Saba	Toyota	Gr Yaris	+ 7:47.5
20	24	Yohan ROSSEL Arnaud DUNAND	Lancia Corse Hf	Lancia	Ypsilon Hf	+ 7:49.6
21	38	Augusto BESTARD José DÍAZ	Augusto Bestard	Toyota	Gr Yaris	+ 7:56.3
22	40	Miguel Ángel ZALDIVAR Juan SÁNCHEZ	Miguel Ángel Zaldivar	Skoda	Fabia Rs	+ 7:59.3
23	23	Nikolay GRYAZIN Konstantin ALEKSANDROV	Lancia Corse Hf	Lancia	Ypsilon Hf	+ 8:15.1
24	39	Miguel ORTEGA Diego CAGNOTTI	Miguel Ortega	Skoda	Fabia Rs	+ 8:15.2
25	45	Miguel GRANADOS Marc MARTÍ	Miguel Granados	Skoda	Fabia Rs	+ 9:53.1
26	31	Andrea LAFARJA Germán MAUNE	Andrea Lafarja	Toyota	Gr Yaris	+ 12:12.8
27	59	Blas ZAPAG Enrique FRATTA	Blas Zapag	Skoda	Fabia Rs	+ 15:27.0
28	42	Sebastián BARCHINI Rubén GARCÍA	Sebastián Barchini	Skoda	Fabia Rs	+ 19:21.3
29	58	Francisco DELGADO Juan CABRERA	Francisco Delgado	Skoda	Fabia Evo	+ 22:35.8
30	28	Yuki YAMAMOTO James FULTON	Printsport	Toyota	Gr Yaris	+ 29:28.8
31	57	Sebastián GONZÁLEZ Diego FABIANI	Sebastián González	Skoda	Fabia Evo	+ 33:04.4
32	47	César PEDOTTI Nicolás ELIZAUR	César Pedotti	Volkswagen	Polo Gti	+ 34:37.1
33	43	Eugen GOTZE Juan BILBAO	Eugen Gotze	Skoda	Fabia Evo	+ 39:37.6
34	56	Mauricio GONZÁLEZ Fernando MENDONCA	Mauricio González	Skoda	Fabia Rs	+ 41:40.0
35	21	Robert VIRVES Jakko VIILO	Toksport Wrt 2	Skoda	Fabia Rs	+ 67:14.6
36	37	Fabrizio GALANTI Sebastián GONZÁLEZ	Fabrizio Galanti	Toyota	Gr Yaris	+ 77:28.0
37	51	Nataniel BRUUN Mario DEL RIEGO	Nataniel Bruun	Ford	Fiesta Rally3	+ 12:11.3
38	48	Ghjuvanni ROSSI Kylian SARMEZAN	Ghjuvanni Rossi	Ford	Fiesta Rally3	+ 13:10.2
39	53	Dean MASCARENHAS Gagan KARUMBAIAH	Dean Mascarenhas	Ford	Fiesta Rally3	+ 13:55.6
40	49	Eric ROYÈRE Maxime ANDERNACK	Eric Royère	Ford	Fiesta Rally3	+ 17:33.5
41	60	Jorge MARTÍNEZ Marcelo BRIZIO	Jorge Martínez	Ford	Fiesta Rally3	+ 18:47.5
42	50	André MARTÍNEZ Matías ARANGUREN	André Martínez	Ford	Fiesta Rally3	+ 74:15.5
43	52	Naveen PULLIGILLA Musa SHERIF	Naveen Pulligilla	Ford	Fiesta Rally3	+ 74:16.2
44	62	Gabriel DUARTE Luis QUEVEDO	Gabriel Duarte	Peugeot	208 Rally4	+ 20:31.5
45	67	Martín TOMÁS Juan PERNIGOTTI	Martín Tomás	Peugeot	208 Rally4	+ 21:21.4
46	65	Fabián HERRERA Omar BENÍTEZ	Fabián Herrera	Peugeot	208 Rally4	+ 23:55.0
47	68	Miguel FRANCO Pedro SOSA	Miguel Franco	Peugeot	208 Rally4	+ 24:03.1
48	70	Raúl SZARAN Luis AGUERO	Raúl Szaran	Peugeot	208 Rally4	+ 32:05.3
49	64	Manuel IRALA Carlos ZARZA	Manuel Irala	Peugeot	208 Rally4	+ 33:40.5
50	71	Sergio ZARZA Hugo ESPINOLA	Sergio Zarza	Peugeot	208 Rally4	+ 36:14.7
51	72	Kevin VASQUEZ Juan Pablo MONASTEROLO	Kevin Vazquez	Peugeot	208 Rally4	+ 37:49.1
52	69	Pedro LAGRAVA Gustavo ROJAS	Pedro Lagrava	Peugeot	208 Rally4	+ 69:45.0
53	61	Iván WASMOSY Gonzalo DÍAZ	Iván Wasmosy	Peugeot	208 Rally4	+ 80:26.4
54	66	Armando MEDINA Gerardo BENÍTEZ	Armando Medina	Peugeot	208 Rally4	+ 82:55.8