LEADING British navigator Daniel Barritt has got his World Championship career off to the perfect start with victory in the season-opening Monte Carlo Rally.

For the 25-year-old from Hapton clinched a well-earned win in the production car class with new driver, Japanese star Fumio Nutahara.

The pair, who had never contested the Monte before, led from stage six of the three-day event, finishing six minutes ahead of their nearest rival, Barritt's former driver David Higgins, in 17th overall.

"As neither of us had done the Monte, we weren't sure what to expect, but we certainly didn't expect to win so convincingly," said Barritt, who was presented with his trophy by Prince Albert of Monaco at the finish.

"The rally itself was fantastic. It is the oldest and best-known rally in the world and the atmosphere, with thousands of spectators lining the route waving flags and sounding klaxons, was just awesome.

"But the conditions on the stages were terrifying. You could do 10 miles on dry tarmac with plenty of grip and then arrive at a corner covered in sheet ice - with a 300-foot drop down the mountain on one side.

"The famous Col du Turini stage was the worst - going down a one-in-one gradient mountain pass on ice with all four wheels locked and picking up speed all the time!

"I had done a lot of homework beforehand, speaking to people who had already competed on the Monte to get a feel of what the conditions would be like. And that paid dividends as we were able to gauge when to press on and when to back off and stay out of trouble."

And Barritt, who has won both the British and American Rally Championships with Higgins, got a pat on the back from his new driver and his employers, the Japanese Advan-PIAA team.

"I have to say a big thank you to my new co-driver Daniel. We had no problems at all and worked very well together, despite the pressure of competing on such a difficult rally," said Nutahara, who drove at Mitsubishi Evo9.

"The conditions have been so bad. All of the time you don't know what is coming around the next corner. Will it be dry or ice or snow? You just never knew.

"The Lancer Evo8 I drove last year was very good, but the new car is even better. We have a lot of power from very low down in the rev range - and it goes to higher revs than before. It is a joy to drive."

Victory has left the pair in the lead of the Production World Rally Championship, a five-round series for 'showroom class' cars which runs in conjunction with the main WRC. The next round is in Mexico on March 3-4.

Added Barritt: "Mexico will be as tough, but for different reasons. All the main PWRC contenders will be there and the pace on the gravel stages will be high. But we are leading, so the pressure is on everyone else to catch us."