During the most recent season of Top Gear, host Chris Harris had the opportunity to drive a McLaren Speedtail prototype.
As far as we’re aware, Harris is the only journalist to have experienced what the Speedtail is all about and to make the most of the special chance, Top Gear’s producers arranged a race between the British hypercar and an F-35B fighter jet.
For the race, Harris had to complete a makeshift lap along three runways in the shape of a triangle. Meanwhile, the fighter jet completed the same lap at just a few hundred feet of the ground and at speeds in excess of 550 mph (885 km/h).
Watch Also: Chris Harris Is A Big Fan Of The 250-MPH McLaren Speedtail
This is not the first time Top Gear has raced a car against a fighter jet. In 2007, Richard Hammond raced a Bugatti Veyron against a fighter jet and despite putting up a good fight, the French hypercar could not keep up.
The McLaren Speedtail is quite a different beast to the Veyron. While it too can hit 250 mph (403 km/h), it has a slight power advantage with 1,035 hp and 858 lb-ft (1,149 Nm) from its twin-turbo 4.0-liter V8 hybrid compared with the 987 hp of the Veyron’s 8.0-liter quad-turbo W16. The McLaren also weighs significantly less than the Veyron and can hit 186 mph (300 km/h) in just 12.8 seconds.
Will this be enough for the Speedtail to defeat the almighty F-35B? Check out the video below to find out.