The Porsche 911 GT3 RS is one the fastest production cars around a racetrack currently on sale. In fact, almost two years ago, it lapped the Nurburgring in an astonishing 6:56.4 minutes, faster than even the 918 Spyder. It’s also pretty expensive with a starting U.S. price of $187,500.
Surely pitting the new, and a lot cheaper at $72,900, 2020 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 against this almighty Porsche around a circuit is a dim-witted thing to do? Not so fast.
In a bid to see just how far the Ford Mustang has become, journalist Jason Cammisa and veteran racer Randy Pobst put the two cars head-to-head at Chuckwalla Valley Raceway for a high-paced battle.
The laps set by the duo both included flying starts and thanks to the nearly 250 hp advantage of the 760 HP GT500, it crosses the start/finish line at 118 mph (189 km/h) compared to the 112 mph (180 km/h) of the 513 HP (520PS) Porsche.
Also Read: Porsche 911 GT3 RS Facelift Unveiled With 520 PS
Chuckwalla’s first series of corners are all very high-speed and favor the Ford immensely, particularly thanks to a series of short straights where it is able to put its power to good use. It also happens to take corners more precisely and at higher speeds than any Mustang before it.
However, the Porsche 911 GT3 RS makes up for some of its deficit under braking and through the tighter and more technical areas of the circuit. It ultimately crosses the finish line in 1:55.57 compared to the 1:55.72 of the Ford, a mere 0.15 seconds behind.
If you weren’t yet sold on Ford’s 760 hp Shelby GT500, this result may convince you that the automaker has indeed created something rather special.