Ford gives rally aces Cronje,Houghton works fiesta

The pair will tackle their fifth season in a Fiesta. The previous four have netted them 15 victories seen them and they dominated the statistics in terms of fastest stage times.

Since changing to a Fiesta in 2009 they have approximately won about 40% percent of all the national championship rally stages in which they have competed.

“We’re thrilled to be driving for Ford again and will go into the first round of the 2015 championship determined to return to the kind of form that saw us dominate in 2013,” says Cronje.

“Last season was not the one we wanted and while we stood on the top of the podium on two occasions, the year  started badly.

“It was difficult to recover from that in what is a very competitive series.”

To ensure everything is in place come the Tour Natal at the end of February, the Fiesta S2000 has already been shipped back to t’she UK headquarters of M-Sport, the internationally renowned builder of the Fiesta and the company which spearheads Ford’s rally efforts worldwide.

The car will undergo a full strip-down and rebuild, and receive the latest round of research and development upgrades along the way.

It is going to be a busy year for Cronje. When he’s not behind the wheel of #24, he’ll be pushing prams as his wife, Kirsten, is expecting twins in May.