Pons out to 'find the feeling again' in Finland.

Xavier Pons has thanked Kronos boss, Marc van Dalen and the entire Belgian-based squad for their support last weekend after he had a disappointing outing on the Rallye Deutschland.

Pons had a tough time in Germany and eventually struggled home in 14th place overall, following a number of issues, including a pace note mix up and technical problems on day two. Although the final day went better he was far from happy with his form and concedes he will need to continue re-building his confidence this coming weekend on the Rally Finland.

"Honestly, I don't want to think in terms of results for Finland," he said in the build-up. "We cannot forget the big number of local drivers and specialists of the Finnish rally who take the start.

"The German weekend was been difficult for Carlos [del Barrio - my co-driver] and I and I really want to thank the Kronos team for their support after all the problems we have encountered during the event. The target in Finland is to find the feeling again as well as the confidence which means that usually we are not too far from the fastest times. And if we can finish inside the points, it will be fantastic!"

To date Pons has competed in Finland three times, finishing ninth in the Junior WRC in 2004 using a Fiat Punto and twelfth overall last year with the Xsara. He also took in the event in 2003 in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VII.

"If I remember right my first outing in Finland in '03 was only my second WRC event after Sweden - and the seventh or eighth rally in my whole career," he continued. "For my former co-driver and friend Jordi Mercader and me, it was an adventure. The most difficult thing at that time was to try to take good pace-notes and to find the correct rhythm between Jordi and myself. What we were discovering was so different from the Catalan asphalt and Spain's little gravel rallies. On Sunday we had to retire two stages from the finish as the front right wheel broke.

"Of course, there are clear differences in the cars I have used in Finland over the years. If I am objective, a 4WD Production car offers more traction, for example after a hairpin, than a Super 1600. In the opposite, the small 'Junior' cars give a very good 'racing' impression. Of course the feeling with a World Rally Car in Finland is the most extreme. The speed is really incredible!

"As Carlos, my experienced co-driver says with the Xsara WRC in Finland, it's Citroen Airlines: the flights are magnificent and it's great!"