McLaren 720S vs. Ferrari 488 Pista Piloti Drag Race Should Be a Lot Closer

All things considered, that means it's going to be a very close race. In fact, the only things left that could influence the outcome are the tires, the aerodynamics, and the drivers. Well, as it turns out, they are more than enough to skew the result one way, though we might have left something out of that list.

The McLarens are famous for finding nearly miraculous ways of putting the power down on the ground thanks to their very well-optimized traction control systems. Where other RWD cars might struggle and either limit the engine's output reaching the wheels or spin them like crazy, the McLaren keeps things just under that critical threshold where they lose traction with the track surface. For the most part, at least, because you might hear a little bit of tire screeching from the 720S as well.

The 488 Pista Piloti, on the other hand, is much more suited for a different type of activity. Like the name suggests ("pista" means "track" in Italian, and we don't need to mention what "piloti" means since it's one "i" away from the English word), it's built to lap circuits, not accelerate in a straight line. Its performance in the drag race perfectly reflects that: it loses ground during the launch and over the first two or three gears, after which it manages to hang on and preserve the gap. However, it can't reel the McLaren in since they share the same amount of power, and the weight difference is negligible at this point.

So, how does the McLaren do it? Well, on our list of possible differentiators, we mentioned something else: tires. The McLaren would have probably won it regardless, but it should have been a closer finish as our title mentions. If the 720S didn't have the Toyo R888R semi-slicks (to the Ferrari 488 Pista's Pirellis), we reckon we would have gotten the race we wanted.

(Races start at 4:25)