From the March/April 2026 issue of Car and Driver.
Lap Time: 2:30.6
Class: LLPro | Base: $360,000 | As Tested: $360,000
Power and Weight: 612 hp • 2950 lb (C/D est) • 4.8 lb/hp
Tires: Hankook Ventus slick
F: 300/660R-18
R: 300/680R-18
Throughout the year, squads of stripped-down Lamborghini Huracán race cars square off in championships in Europe, Asia, and the U.S. VIR resident Kaizen Autosport looked after this particular example on behalf of a client last year who ran in the Pro-Am class; thanks to both of them for bringing it to Lightning Lap.
After sizing up the livery, meant to mimic a child’s play mat adorned with roads and buildings, we folded ourselves into the Huracán’s tight confines. Even with the seat bolted to the floor and no headliner, our tallest staffer barely fit; our right knee whacking the shift paddle caused a few unplanned upshifts. It’s a serious thrill to pilot—so eager, so precise, and also a serious workout. Standing on the brakes hard enough to get the dash lights to blink, indicating ABS activation, takes massive effort. But you can brake incredibly late.
We want to bottle up the V-10’s syncopated scream because we already miss it dearly. As we found ourselves traveling backward in the grass, we were reminded that stiffly suspended race cars don’t swallow curbs like street cars do, and they spin rather instantaneously.
Kaizen hot shoe Wyatt Foster, who co-drove this car for the season and finished as high as third, set the timed lap. The Super Trofeo is a perfect example of what downforce (roughly 1500 pounds at 170 mph), light weight (2756 pounds minimum), and slicks can do. Using most of the 17 degrees of rear-wing angle the series allows, the Huracán is glued through the Climbing Esses. Foster’s right foot never flinches as he actually accelerates through them, averaging 153.2 mph. That’s 12.0 mph faster than the Corvette ZR1, the fastest street car we’ve run, and just 5.3 mph shy of the swiftest thing we’ve measured in this sector, the Garage 56 Camaro.
The 5.2-liter V-10 retains stock internals and makes 612 horsepower. And all of that downforce means limited top end; the Super Trofeo’s 164.7-mph peak isn’t even in our top 10 among street cars. While the Hankook slicks are more endurance oriented, their 1.19-g average in Turn 1 doesn’t exceed that of some street tires in previous years, another clue that grip was lacking. Compare it to the bonkers 1.43 g’s from last year’s Ford Supertruck.
Still, a 2:30.6 lap is heroic. That’s 13.3 seconds quicker than the quickest street Huracán and 11.1 quicker than the new Temerario. The $360K price seems downright reasonable compared with that of Lamborghini street cars, and the Kaizen crew attests to the car’s durability. We’re drooling at the thought of what the Temerario Super Trofeo might be capable of with an infusion of power from the new twin-turbocharged V-8. Hopefully, we’ll find out soon.
Back to Lightning Lap 2026
Dave VanderWerp has spent more than 20 years in the automotive industry, in varied roles from engineering to product consulting, and now leading Car and Driver‘s vehicle-testing efforts. Dave got his very lucky start at C/D by happening to submit an unsolicited resume at just the right time to land a part-time road warrior job when he was a student at the University of Michigan, where he immediately became enthralled with the world of automotive journalism.