It’s been fully two weeks since I drove Porsche’s GTE-spec 911 RSR, and the experience is still not fully digested. Not for the usual reasons, though, because on paper the RSR is not particularly spectacular: 515hp from a bespoke 4.2-litre flat-six, 1.2-tonnes and adjustable aerodynamics are familiar GTE specs. No, the reason the RSR made such an impression is thanks to way it melds so many disparate talents into one cohesive package. One that a mere mortal can get to grips with.
The RSR-19 won the 2019 World Endurance Championship, so the design has already proven its point. But until now, only those qualified – a.k.a proper racing drivers – have been lucky enough to get behind the wheel. PH’s drive in Porsche’s million-euro creation (at the brilliant and very challenging Vallelunga circuit, no less) represents the first go for anyone not able to buy their way into a Pro Am seat at Le Mans.
If you read the review earlier this month, you’ll already know the result. But as ever the video tells its own story - not least because it features me sweating and saying 'wow' a lot. (I didn’t notice it until watching the footage back, but so absorbed was I in the driving of the RSR that I apparently forgot to blink for most of my stint.) That says something about the car. The rest you'll get from wearing headphones and clicking play.
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