Joni-Pekka Rajala

Joni-Pekka Rajala
Nationality	Finnish
Born	18 August 1984 Finland
European Rallycross Championship career
Debut season	2012
Current team	Eklund Motorsport
Car no.	60
Starts	11
Wins	0
Best finish	4th in 2015 (Supercar)
FIA World Rallycross Championship
Years active	2014–2016
Car no.	60
Former teams	Eklund Motorsport Hedströms Motorsport
Starts	3
Wins	0
Best finish	31st in 2014

Joni-Pekka "Jonttu" Rajala (born 18 August 1984) is a Finnish racing driver currently participating in the FIA European Rallycross Championship. He currently races a Volkswagen Beetle for Per Eklund Motorsport.

Biography

Rajala battles Pontus Tidemand in the 2014 World RX of Finland

Rajala is a six-time champion of the Finnish Rallycross Championship. He has won 4 consecutive titles in the SRC – SuperNational (2WD) category (2011 through 2014) with a Ford Escort Mk7, along with back-to-back titles in the Supercars category (2013 and 2014) behind the wheel of a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VI. This was also a Finnish record, as it was the first time a driver had won both categories two years in a row.

Rajala's big break came at the 2014 World RX of Finland, where he was able to showcase his talent in a privateer-entered Škoda Fabia. He was knocked out in the Semi-Final stage however was promoted to the Final as Petter Solberg was unable to make the grid and neither could first understudy Timmy Hansen. He subsequently retired with engine failure, but had done enough to maintain his drive for the following round in Sweden. Amongst a larger grid with more competitive drivers he finished a lowly 22nd and didn't race again that season – however he had attracted the attention of Per Eklund, who offered him a full-time 2015 FIA European Rallycross Championship drive in a Saab 9-3. Rajala exceeded all expectations that season, finishing 4th in the championship – with the highlight being 2nd in Norway – despite driving an inferior car.

Rajala returned to Euro RX with Per Eklund Motorsport in 2016, with a new VW Beetle which promised to be more competitive than the Saab. Despite this, he only managed to make the final once and finished 10th in the standings. He also made his third World RX start, in Germany, coming 20th overall in a new Mitsubishi Mirage.

Results

Complete FIA World Rallycross Championship results

Supercar

Year	Entrant	Car	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	WRX	Points
2014	Hedströms Motorsport	Škoda Fabia	POR	GBR	NOR	FIN 6	SWE 22	BEL	CAN	FRA	GER	ITA	TUR	ARG	31st	13
2016	Eklund Motorsport	Mitsubishi Mirage	POR	HOC	BEL	GBR	NOR	SWE	CAN	FRA	BAR	LAT	GER 20	ARG	34th	0

Complete FIA European Rallycross Championship results

TouringCar

Year	Entrant	Car	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	ERX	Points
2012	Joni-Pekka Rajala	Ford Fiesta ST	GBR	FRA	AUT	HUN	NOR	SWE	BEL	NED	FIN 7	GER	27th	10

Supercar

Year	Entrant	Car	1	2	3	4	5	ERX	Points
2015	Eklund Motorsport	Saab 9-3	BEL 7	GER 5	NOR 2	BAR 3	ITA 8	4th	86
2016	Eklund Motorsport	Volkswagen Beetle	BEL 6	NOR 9	SWE 15	BAR 20	LAT 18	10th	33

External links