Ron Dennis has said that the new McLaren P1 will smash lap records at the Nurburgring and at the Top Gear track at Dunsfold.
Perhaps, just perhaps, LaFerrari has taken the crown as the star car at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show from the McLaren P1.
But that’s as much about the run-up to Geneva as the Motor Show itself as Ferrari had managed to keep LaFerrari under wtaps until just a few hours before it debuted. So interest and excitement were high and LaFerrari did little to disappoint.
But the McLaren had a different path to its public reveal at Geneva in production guise, with a virtually identical P1 bowing in at Paris last year and a constant drip of information and photos – and a P1 reveal before Geneva – taking the gloss of the P1’s debut in Switzerland.
But McLaren are fighting back with big claims for the P1’s performance – which seems the match of LaFerrari – and Ron Dennis has said that not only will the McLaren P1 get round the Nurburgring in ‘under 7 minutes’ (the only cars to have done that are both Radicals) but that it will blitz the Top Gear lap record at Dunsfold.
Ron has revealed that he drove the P1 round Dunsfold and put in a time 10 seconds better than the current Top Gear lap record.
We assume he’s referring to the contentious lap record set on the Top Gear track by the Pagani Huayra a week or two ago – which would mean the P1 went round Dunsfold in around 1:03 – but even if he’s talking about the previous record by the Ariel that still means Ron Dennis drove the McLaren P1 round the Top Gear test track in 1:05s.
Ron Dennis made his claims for the P1 at the launch of the P1 in Geneva, which you can watch below. What we now need to know is how quickly will the Stig be able to get the McLaren P1 round the Top Gear Track.
And on which tyres?
Oblivious says
What I want to know is if Ferrari will have the balls to let the Stig take LaFerrari round the Top Gear track? That, almost more than anything, would give us a real comparison between that and the P1.
Sacha says
You said when the Pagani beat the top gear record that it was a time for the P1 to beat and it looks like it already has and by a long way!!
Alexander says
The P1 has custom made tyres, so they’re will be no cheating with race tyres.
Pete says
The Stig lapped Dunsfold in a 2004 Renault F1 car in 59.7seconds. Assuming he drives the P1 and his driving skills exceed those of Ron Dennis, if the P1 has a set of super sticky road tyres fitted it will be interesting to see just how close it can get to a 1 minute lap.