Motoring
Who wins a race between F1, rallycross, drift and pro4 on a custom track?
See what happens when four elite drivers race head-to-head across tarmac and dirt on a custom track that evens the odds.
When it comes to drag racing and straight-line speed, you’ve seen the world’s top vehicles, from Formula 1 to Rallycross, face off before. But let’s face it, that’s not a truly fair fight – the world’s top vehicles across the world of global motorsport each have their own specialties that set them up for success in their own discipline of racing.
But what would happen if a group of elite vehicles faced off on a custom race track, blending on and off-road sections into a hybrid course that gave each car a chance to shine on an even playing field? We set out to find out, and built a track just outside Houston, Texas featuring dedicated lines purpose-built for four incredible vehicles from the worlds of Formula 1, off-road racing, rallycross and drift competition.
01
Who’s competing on the ultimate racetrack?
Behind the wheel of each of these remarkables vehicles sat an incredible driver. The championship-winning RB7 Formula 1 car was driven by F1 veteran Patrick Friesacher. Andrew Carlson brought his Pro4 off-road truck, built to dominate short course racing. Representing the world of rallycross, multi-series veteran Scott Speed joined the action in his Subaru. And the newest vehicle in the mix came with drift extraordinaire Mad Mike Whiddett, who brought his brand-new, custom-spec “MADMAC” MacLaren drift hypercar to the party.
02
What makes these vehicles unique?
Patrick Friesacher pilots the RB7 Formula 1 car
© Chris Tedesco
The rallycross car sets the pace off the line, and navigates tight corners
© Al Arena
The Pro4 truck’s suspension allows it to tit dirt jumps
© Chris Tedesco
The MADMAC is the ultimate vehicle for sliding in style
© Al Arena
Each of these vehicles is expertly tuned for high performance in its own unique context. The Formula 1 car is perhaps most at home on this track, with its remarkable ability to maintain high speeds while cornering pairing with a powerful V8 engine. An F1 car traveling at top speed can generate three to four times its weight in downforce. That's equivalent to a rhinoceros sitting on the car, pushing it down, and sticking it to the track.
But when it comes to getting off the line in record time, the rallycross car’s acceleration stands apart. These cars are designed for acceleration, reaching 60 mph in just 1.9 seconds. A Rallycross car would in fact beat gravity off the line in a head-to-head race – an object in freefall accelerates at 32.2 feet per second squared. A Rallycross car accelerates at around 46.3 feet per second squared. That means this car can beat gravity in a head-to-head race, pulling 1.4Gs and reaching 60 mph in just 1.9 seconds.
And while the rallycross car is capable of keeping pace through off-road sections, mud and dirt is truly the home of the Pro4 truck. The Pro4 has a suspension built to devour rough, rutted short-course dirt tracks with up to 20 inches of travel – a stark difference to the 1 to 2 inches of travel allowed by the RB7’s suspension).
Finally, when it comes to style, there’s hardly a vehicle on the planet that can match the MADMAC’s incomparable ability to drift and smoke tires. With its 1000-horsepower, flame-spitting custom rotary engine, Mad Mike's McLaren Drift Car is more than five times as powerful as an average sedan and even more powerful than the RB7 F1 car.
03
The numbers behind these vehicles
Vehicle
Driver
Weight
Horsepower
RPM
RB7 Formula 1 Car
Patrick Friesacher
1,400 lbs
750
18,000
Subaru Rallycross Car
Scott Speed
2,865 lbs
600
6,400
“MADMAC” Drift Hypercar
Mad Mike Whiddett
2,700 lbs
1,000
11,000
Pro4 Truck
Andrew Carlson
4,500 lbs
950
8,000
04
Who ruled qualifying?
The four drivers survey their qualifying lines with host Emelia Hartford
© Chris Tedesco
Before the four vehicles faced off on the Ultimate Racetrack, each ran a qualifying lap on their individual line to ensure the track was balanced and set up for a fair race. Here are their qualifying times:
Vehicle
Qualifying time
Gap to top qualifier
Pro4
01:20.23
--
Formula 1
01:20.36
+0.13
Rallycross
01:20:56
+0.20
Drift
01:21.40
+0.844
05
Who won the race?
Four-car showdown
© Chris Tedesco
To see who came out on top in the final winner-take-all race, check out the video above and watch this four-car showdown.