McLaren P1 GTR Almost Crashes On Corkscrew At Mazda Raceway
By Paulo Acoba
A development McLaren P1 GTR almost crashed on the corkscrew at Laguna Seca.
If your not an absolute Formula 1 ace or aren’t a serious racer veteran who drives at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca on the daily, the corkscrew poses a formidable on-track challenge. According to a recent YouTube upload that hit the web earlier this weekend, this McLaren P1 GTR found that out the hard way when he was giving it 100 percent on this infamous turn and almost crashed into a concrete barrier. After entering into turn 8 with way too much speed and oversteering into the curve, the P1 GTR loses rear traction and spins towards the wall. Check out the video for yourself below.
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With every purchase of the $3.8 Million McLaren P1 GTR comes the super exclusive drivers program. In that program are nine track days hosted around the world which aims to let their P1 GTR owners unleash the full potential of their vehicles. McLaren isn’t going to unleash you into the world with the possibility of you making a fool out of yourself, they’re going to make sure that you’ve got all the right skills to really ring the necks out of these supercars. Prior to even getting into a racetrack situation, owners have already gone through simulator training in Woking, England. These are the same simulators used by F1 drivers and ensure that you’ve got a bit of confidence going into a track day.
In this video, the development driver and his development P1 GTR is setting a lap-time for P1 GTR owners to beat. By the looks of things, he was giving it everything he’s got, which resulted in taking a line that even the P1 GTR’s computers couldn’t adjust and correct for.
According to the video uploader,
"While spectating one of the first Mclaren GTR private track days at Laguna Seca, one of the demo/factory owned P1 GTRs nearly crashed into the concrete barrier at the infamous corkscrew turn. The car was being driven by a professional driver; he was to set a lap time so the P1 GTR clients can try to match or beat the lap he sets. He was going absolutely 100% and overtook a handful of drivers."
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They say there’s no better learning than experience and for this particular corner, it looks like the P1 GTR and its owners know what to do. With only 35 P1 GTR’s made, it would be a shame to see one crash. Equipping its drivers with the right skills isn’t just good marketing, it’s good business for McLaren.