Audi RS7 Dares Challenge a Ferrari 458 Italia To a Drag Race

This is exactly what happens in the video below, with an Audi RS7 and a 458 Italia engaging in a drag race. The two speed demons duked it out on an airfield runway, with the drivers having all the space in the world to stretch the legs of their machines.

Truth be told, even when the 458 Italia was the reigning Ferrari V8 supercars, the straight-line performance of the thing didn't quite seem as impressive as its handling. Then again, the 458 and the RS7 are more than one league apart in terms of weight, so the Audi driver was pretty bold in his Ferrari-challenging action.

However, before inviting you to click the "play" button below and see what happens when the two go at it, we want to talk numbers.

The 4.5-liter V8 in the middle of the 458 Italia allows the driver to control 560 hp, while the twin-turbo 4.0-liter V8 animating the RS7 produces 10 extra ponies. Nevertheless, the naturally aspirated nature of the Prancing Horse powerplant means the RS7 clearly dominates the supercar on the torque front - we're talking lb-ft( 700 Nm) vs. lb-ft (540 Nm).

Even so, when it comes to the power-to-weight ratio, the Fezza delivers 2.9 kg per hp, while the Audi comes with 3.8 kg per hp.

And while the RS7 obviously packs Audi's quattro all-paw system, this battle saw the cars going for a rolling start, so the advantage is lost.

P.S.: Yes, Audi does also build the RS7 Performance, which comes with 605 hp. Then again, Ferrari also used to make the 605 PS (597 HP)  458 Speciale, so this is another story for another time.