Team Profile
A separate entry within the Toyota organisation
The official entry name of Toyota’s second team is TOYOTA GAZOO Racing WRT2. It uses the GR Yaris Rally1, the same make and class of car as Toyota’s main team, but is listed separately in entry lists and points records. The “2” in WRT2 is part of the team’s name; it should not be taken to mean that this is a WRC2 team using a lower-category car.
After Pajari stepped up to a full-season Rally1 programme in 2025, this arrangement became an important part of understanding Toyota’s multi-driver line-up: drivers can belong to the same manufacturer organisation while competing under separate entries. WRT2’s status must also be distinguished from Pajari’s individual results, as he still competes directly for points in the overall WRC drivers’ standings.
The Pajari crew’s progress and role in 2026
The main crew featured on this profile page is Sami Pajari and Marko Salminen, competing in car No. 5. Pajari progressed to Rally1 after winning the Junior WRC title in 2021 and the WRC2 title in 2024. An overall podium finish at Rally Japan in 2025 laid the foundations for his second full season in the top category.
In 2026, Pajari claimed his first overall WRC victory in Estonia, then went on to win in Finland and Paraguay. These were overall rally victories achieved in a Rally1 car, not WRC2 category wins. They also demonstrate that a driver competing under a separate entry can still contend for outright victory.
What exactly is the difference between WRT2 and WRC2?
WRT2 is a team name; WRC2 is a championship category. Toyota’s second team currently uses the GR Yaris Rally1 and competes in the top category. The GR Yaris Rally2 is a different car, available to WRC2 competitors. Pajari won the WRC2 title in a Rally2 car in 2024 before switching to Rally1 and competing under the WRT2 entry, a transition involving changes to both his car category and his entry arrangements.
How to read the separate points totals
The FIA manufacturers’ standings can list Toyota’s main team, Hyundai, M-Sport Ford and Toyota’s second team at the same time, but these entries do not represent four car brands. WRT2 represents another entry within Toyota, with its points recorded separately. When assessing the main Toyota team’s results, the second team’s points cannot simply be added to its total. The drivers’ standings, the standings for manufacturer entries and the number of brands are different measures.
What to watch
Editorial analysis: Pajari’s performances can be compared with those of the main team’s drivers in the same model of car, watching how he builds on his strengths on familiar surfaces during his second full season and tackles events where he has less experience. Starting order and changing road conditions must still be considered in any comparison. A separate entry does not place a predetermined ceiling on a driver’s pace; what really matters is stage times, execution across the whole rally and sustained results.
Driver Line-up
Last checked: 1 October 2026 · Historical statistics and current points are maintained separately