Top Gear Breaks Loop-the-Loop World Record In South Africa

The Top Gear Stunt team has achieved the first ever double loop-the-loop in a car in front of an audience in South Africa.

Last week we reported that Top Gear were planning to attempt the first ever double loop-the-loop at the Top Gear Festival in Durban. And by jove, they did it.

In typical TG fashion they told us last week that the world could end if they got it wrong; just 2mph too slow and the buggy they were using would drop off the loop and too fast and the driver would black out.

Sensibly, they didn’t use any of the regulars to do the stunt – Jeremy would have gone at it like a bull in a china shop, May would have been too slow and Hammond and world records have a poor history – so an un-named professional driver completed the stunt.

Somehow we’d expected a bit more in the way of drama from a first time stunt like the ‘Deadly 720’ – especially as they’d failed twice in rehearsals – but the event itself was remarkably low key and matter of fact. The buggy approached at what seemed a too slow speed and simply looped-the-loop twice. Job done.

Jeremy, unsurprisingly, had a view on the record:

It was quite remarkable. As anyone who has seen Top Gear either live or on TV will know, we are much more famous for mucking about and breaking other things like caravans – certainly not for breaking world records! I’m just glad no one asked me to do it…

Hopefully, Top Gear will repeating the feat when Top Gear Live returns to the UK later in 2012.

Top Gear Double Loop-the-Loop Video