Red Bull Motorsports
F1
Who wins a drag race between F1, MotoGP™, Rally, WRC and Electric Supervan?
A top line-up of drivers and riders face off in a drag race to end all drag races. Learn who’s quickest in a straight line out of MotoGP™, Rally, WRC and Electric Supervans!
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If you challenged an F1 car, MotoGP™ bike, rallycross car, WRC car and an electric vehicle, the Ford SuperVan 4.2, to a drag race, who do you think would win? The Ultimate Race reveals which vehicle has the quickest straight-line speed over a quarter-mile drag strip at a remote airfield location.
It's not an easy one to call. As everyone knows, Formula One cars are the fastest on four wheels, but are they quicker than a MotoGP™ bike? Modern WRC cars are quick, too, while World Rallycross cars are specifically built for short sprints. And don't write off the Ford SuperVan 4.2 – they're direct drive and very quick off the mark.
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Who's competing in the ultimate drag race?
Piloting the vehicles are the cream of international motorsport. F1’s newest driver and Red Bull Racing test driver Liam Lawson is at the wheel of the World Championship-winning RB8, while MotoGP™ race-winner and Red Bull KTM Factory Racing development rider Dani Pedrosa takes the RC16
WRX champion Timmy Hansen piloted his Team Peugeot-Hansen 208 rallycross car and WRC star Adrien Fourmaux is in a Ford Puma Hybrid Rally1. Finally, as a wildcard, legendary Le Mans-winner Romain Dumas is in a Ford SuperVan 4.2, an all-electric beast that he took to the top of the 2023 Pikes Peak Hill Climb.
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The vehicles and the stats you need to know
Ready for action
© Red Bull
The tension builds
© Alex Carmichael/Carwow/Red Bull Content Pool
Drivers, start your engines!
© Alex Carmichael/Carwow/Red Bull Content Pool
The RC16 of Red Bull KTM Factory Racing driver Dani Pedrosa
© Alex Carmichael/Carwow/Red Bull Content Pool
Vehicle
Engine
Output
Weight
Red Bull Racing RB8
Renault RS27 2.4 V8
850hp
640kg
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing RC16
1,000cc
270hp
160kg
Peugeot 208 RX1e
1,000cc Turbo
500kW (680bhp)
1300kg
M-Sport Ford Puma Hybrid Rally1
1.6lt Ecoboost Hybrid Turbo + 100 kW electric motor
550hp
1260kg
Ford SuperVan 4.2
50kWh battery powering three x STARD UHP 6-phase motors
2,000 hp (1,500 kW)
1680kg
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Who won the Ultimate Race?
Lawson congratulates Pedrosa on his win
© Alex Carmichael/Carwow/Red Bull Content Pool
Race
P1
P2
1
MotoGP™
F1
2
MotoGP™
F1
3
MotoGP™
Ford Supervan
Over the 400m distance, no one could beat the mighty Pedrosa and his Red Bull KTM Factory Racing RC16. The Spaniard has put in the hard yards developing the KTMs to transform the revolutionary steel-framed bikes into race-winners. He was followed home closely by Lawson in the RB8 in the opening two rounds, but the real shock was the all-out electric power of the Ford Supervan 4.2 beating the F1 car by 0.1 sec in the final heat.
According to Pedrosa, he had even more power in his right hand, but needed to moderate it to make sure his tyre had maximum grip. This gave him the fastest-possible getaway on the slippery surface. “It was tricky at first not to use too much power so I could get the best traction,” said the winner of 31 MotoGP™ races.
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