Ferrari 488 Pista vs. LaFerrari Drag Race Is Full of Prancing Horses

The LaFerrari is that one exotic hypercar Ferrari makes once per decade or so. It uses a mid-engine layout like the rest of them, but also hybrid V12 technology which seemed revolutionary at the time of its launch.

Thanks to the 789 horsepower V12 and 161 horsepower electric boost, this thing is supposed to accelerate about as fast as a Bugatti Veyron while achieving a reasonable fuel economy. Somehow, got lucky with a generation of Ferrari owners that like drag racing, which wasn't the case with previous hypercars.

But a 488 Pista? That's one step away from a sports car. How dare it taken on the mafia clan boss! It dares because of the secret weapon hiding under the hood. You see, the Pista is more powerful than any 458 or 488 because of the new engine. The Italians say it's making 711 horsepower and 567 lb-ft of torque. However, we wouldn't be surprised if it's even more.

As a purpose-built track tool, it's also lighter than the other models in its range, but an open-top configuration offsets this advantage. In the drag race itself, the Pista is obviously a little slower than the hypercar, but not by much.

As for the surprise appearence in the videos below, it comes in the form of a new Alfa Romeo Giulia GTAm. This exotic sedan has been redesigned with 2-inch wider front and rear wheel arches and carbon bodywork that contributes to a 200-pound (100 kg) weight saving.

The twin-turbo 2.9-liter that was originally engineered with Ferrari's help now makes close to 540 hp, which allows the GTAm to sprint to 62 mph in 3.6 seconds. These Swiss drag races also allow us to sample the new Akrapovic exhaust.