Kronos boss: That was a baptism of fire!

Kronos team boss, Marc van Dalen has praised his team, after their performance at the weekend on the Rallye Monte Carlo, the opening round of the 2006 FIA World Rally Championship.

van Dalen added that the collaboration between his people and those from Citroen Sport has been 'instant and perfect', something that allowed them to make a strong start to the year, finishing second with Sebastien Loeb, despite his off on Friday, while Xavier Pons came home ninth in the sister car and Daniel Sordo was eighth. As such the team scored 11 points for the manufacturers' championship, 3 less than Ford, who take the early lead.

"What a baptism of fire!" said van Dalen. "We've experienced the worst road conditions in years, some difficult tyre choices from the start, and the race to re-prepare Seb's car on Friday night - which had to be perfect in order for him to carry out the recovery drive he had planned.

"Then it all went down to the wire on the last stage. Seb has been astonishing, Xevi has brought us three points, and Dani has made a remarkable start. The whole team has been as motivated and enthusiastic as our drivers and co-drivers

"The collaboration between our own people and those helping us from Citroen Sport has been instant and perfect. I hope that our work here at Kronos has been worthy of the faith [Citroen boss] Guy Frequelin placed in us and the expectations of our partners. And I also hope that we keep going down this road."

Pons meanwhile, while largely overshadowed by the performance of his team-mate, Loeb, was pleased to have reached the finish, especially as he scored three manufacturers' points for the team.

"Reaching this objective was one of the reasons why I wanted to get to the finish at all costs, on a rally that has been incredibly difficult," he noted. "For the first time today, I was pleased with my driving on ice with 'slick' tyres. I've been amazed by Seb's achievement, and I know that I will be able to learn a lot from him. Finally, I'd like to congratulate Dani Sordo - my friend and old rival in the Spanish Championship, on an excellent World Rally Car debut."