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With Toyota banned from competing for a whole year, and a Mitsubishi team with an over-inflated budget, the only viable option was Ford and its Escort Cosworth, although it meant practically starting from scratch.� A car which had shone on many occasions, with important victories in races such as the World Rallies of Montecarlo, Portugal, Corsica, Acropolis, 1000 Lakes, etc: In short great potential, but no recent progress, in comparison to how other teams had advanced.

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Not much was expected of this new Ford-Repsol-Sainz association in the first year, and initially there was much caution as to a prediction on what was going to happen throughout the season.

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However, it only took the first rally of the year in Sweden in principle for the black clouds to disappear and be replaced by a cumulus of unbeatable prospects, when Carlos Sainz in his first outing in the Ford Escort Cosworth finished in second place on the icy Swedish roads.

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This encouraged everyone, but reality brought us down to earth when the car only withstood a few hundred kilometres in the hard Safari Rally.

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Nevertheless, we shone again in Indonesia when Carlos Sainz and Luis Moya achieved a victory which, since it was unexpected, left us a little surprised.� The fact that in the third rally of the season, a new car and team managed to win, continued to leave us astounded.� However, it is true that the talent and daring of the Repsol drivers dominated the Indonesian date, compared to a constant succesion of mistakes by their rivals.

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For the Acropolis Rally at the start of June, feet had to be placed firmly on the ground and it had to admitted that, on very specific terrain, Ford mechanics did not quite measure up to those of a Subaru or Mitsubishi, which with Tommi Makinen and Colin McRae,� were sharing the victories as the season progressed. Second position in Argentina, behind an immovable Makinen, showed there were still chances for titles; chances that practically disappeared in the 1000 Lakes where Carlos Sainz made his second withdrawal of the season.

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As from the end of August, with Makinen�s victory in his country, which moreover was the fourth of the season for Sainz and the Ford Repsol team, the rest of the dates should have been wins.� This did not happen.

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Third place in Australia where Tommi Makinen was crowned World Champion, second in San Remo, and withdrawal from the event on the last date of the season, in Catalu�a, ruined a season of which no-one expected anything, even of the new Ford-Repsol team.� Carlos Sainz�s magic gave us great hope, then reality made us aware of the difficulties and challenges involved in winning a World Championship.