First came the Monte Carlo Rally, the most prestigious of the World Championship series. Sainz continued to take his Toyota to the limits of its capacity, but a newcomer, Fran�ois Delecour, was faster at the wheel of his Ford Escort Cosworth. However, in the last stretch, the legendary Col of Turini, he was forced to surrender in view of a broken suspension joint, watching as victory slid away from him, and nobody could have consoled him better than Carlos Sainz who had lived through the same experience fourteen months previously.

For the first time the driver from Madrid managed to finish in first place in Portugal. However, in Kenya an engine breakdown put an end to his incredible run of wins. But this was just the exception to the rule. The Tour de Corse was the next step in the World Rally Championship and it saw the Spaniard victorious once again. In Greece, a puncture was the sole reason for which Juha Kankunen passed him just before the finish line. In New Zealand he added another feather to his cap and in Argentina, Sainz obtained another victory in the face of a powerful line up from the Lancia team, in what can only be described as an authentic feat of skill on the part of the Spanish driver. This added up to a total of five victories in seven races. However, from that moment on everything began to go wrong.

In the 1000 Lake Rally, he was obliged to train in a vehicle that was way out of date with a low speed capacity, and without the aid of his notes which had been stolen the previous year on his arrival in Barajas, Carlos Sainz was driving on a knife�s edge until he committed an error in the Finnish race, and ended in fourth place. The worst would occur in Australia where the Spanish driver became the unhappy protagonist. Sainz began the race in the lead, maintaining this position until he arrived at a small asphalt stretch for which he hadn�t changed the ground suspension of his Toyota.

His vehicle suddenly changed its course and Sainz ended up overturning in what was a true spectacle. The nerves of the Spanish driver began to make themselves felt, and the fact that all the responsibility for the team in the titles struggle weighed heavily on his shoulders became increasingly evident. The following morning, Sainz received another fright just after beginning. And a short while later, the hairs of the spectators stood on end as they watched Sainz, whether on television or live, suffer a terrible accident.

However, Sainz was lucky, his guardian angel did not abandon him. A cervical problem forced him to use a neck brace for some time, but this was nothing compared to the thousands of tests to which he was subjected. In San Remo, the driver could not compete for first place and his physical and psychological well-being, as well as transmission problems with his vehicle, caused him to lose three positions at a moment when he was classified in overall third. Only the fact that Juho Kankunen was forced to abandon the race due to a lost wheel in the second stretch, momentarily saved the Spaniard.

The next challenge to be overcome was the Catalu�a-Costa Brava Rally, which was valid for the World Championship for the first time ever. Carlos Sainz could not have been better prepared for a highly attended and unforgiving event. He and his colleague, the German Armin Schwarz, finished the first stage as leaders. Once again it looked as if nothing could go wrong. However, in the closed park of Lloret de Mar, his Toyota Celica GT-Four, for some inexplicable reason, refused to start. All efforts were in vain and once again the Spanish driver was left without a taste of victory at home. Despite everything, Schwarz managed to miraculously win after having overturned three stretches from the end.

Seven points separated Sainz from Juha Kankkunen in Harrogate, at the start of the RAC in England, a race that turned out to be as unpredictable as ever. However, in spite of recovering one of the first positions in the fight for victory, this time mechanical problems with the engine temperature were the cause of Sainz missing out on a new World Championship title. This time it went to the Finn, Juha Kankkunen when he won the British race.