Generally speaking, drag racing is about really powerful machines, not stock supercars or slightly more powerful versions of whatever it is you happen to be driving.
However, what makes the Porsche 911 Turbo a sneaky good choice when drag racing is the fact that it’s absolutely bonkers how fast it can get off the line.
With 521 PS at its disposal, it will hit 100 km/h (62 mph) in just 3.4 seconds and gallop towards a top speed of 315 km/h (195 mph). It also has all wheel drive which means that all that muscle is actually being flexed while accelerating.
So now imagine it with 650 horses, much like the PP-Performance RS650 in this video. You’ll see it lay waste to not just a 700 PS Lamborghini Aventador (stock, obviously), but also a massively fast 700 HP Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Coupe – one that’s very hard to beat these days.
The RS650 911 Turbo did a 10.3 sec 1/4 mile, compared to the 11 sec flat managed by the Aventador. It also got off the line 0.3 seconds quicker and beat the Lambo to the 1,000 meters mark (1 km).
Racing against the 700 HP C63 AMG was a little bit easier since the Mercedes really couldn’t accelerate as fast as it should in order to keep up with the 911.
So yes, in drag racing circles, people are usually weary about taking on tuned 911 Turbos – mainly because they don’t need too much extra muscle in order to take a quick lead and hold on to it until the finish line.