Dodge Challenger Drags Ford Mustang GT, Someone Needs to Speed Up the Frames

That means we must prepare for an influx of comparisons and races against the other American pony and muscle car faction members – the Chevy Camaro and Dodge Challenger plus Charger. However, that will also signal the true end of an era – as the seventh-gen Mustang is the only one keeping the ICE banner up.

Meanwhile, its respected adversaries will head out into retirement one by one. First, the ICE-powered 2023 model year Dodge Challenger and Charger will give up their gasoline-fueled lifestyle after those seven 'Last Call' special editions, including the 1,025-hp (on E85) 2023 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170.

Secondly, the 2024 model year will be the final one for the sixth generation Chevy Camaro – and it will, too, cease production in January next year after only a couple of limited series, the range-wide Collector's Edition and the 56-unit Garage 56 ZL1 models. Whereas the Charger has a Banshee EV future via the production version of the Daytona SRT concept, no one really knows what will happen with the Challenger and Camaro in the near future.

That makes it quite hard to watch for Mopar fans when a Dodge is involved in classic quarter-mile dragstrip shenanigans, most likely – knowing that these are possibly the final installments in the ICE-powered saga. And it will be even harder watching it duke out with the number one enemy that also got an extended lease of traditional gasoline-fueled v8 life.

Oh well, someone needs to sacrifice and do it, anyway. So, here is the videographer behind the Wheels Plus channel on YouTube, who is a big fan of MRP (Mission Raceway Park – Thunder by the River) and Bandimere Speedway (aka Thunder Mountain) but sometimes also loves to dabble with The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Here, in Las Vegas, everything is double fashionable – including the quarter-mile dragstrip's lanes. However, no one needs all four of them for this brawl between a dark blue Ford Mustang GT equipped with the 5.0-liter Coyote V8 engine and a dark maroon or cherry Dodge Challenger R/T Scat Pack rocking the Hemi V8.

On paper, these two are pretty fly for their respective sectors, and the skirmish should be more than balanced. But, in reality, there's more to it than stomping on the accelerator pedal and letting the big and brawny muscle cars with potent V8s do all the work for them. Instead, the drivers should also find the right balance between power and traction. Otherwise, it will happen like on this occasion – the V8 muscle car with the least amount of wheel slip got the upper hand and ultimately won the race with 13.51s to 14.29s ETs.