The Italian Menace

2011 Ferrari 458 Italia Grand Am

It seems that Ferrari just won't give in to failure or exclusion when it comes to racing. Their latest supercar, the 458 Italia has already been involved in the FIA GT2 and the inner Ferrari Challenge circuits, but it looks like the mighty Grand Am's want to see if the car is really "all that". For racing reasons, the traditional 562 horsepower 4.5-liter Ferrari V8 engine has been detuned to 500 horsepower to keep the car between the lines of the other race cars in its class. So, it might be slower than the actual road car, but nevertheless. Ferrari always have a way of tuning their race cars to perfection. So, this detune might be forging a path something big hidden in this racer. Let's see how it does on the track. 

If James Bond Ever Did FIA GT3 Racing

2012 Aston Martin V12 Vantage GT3

Say hello to Aston Martin's new GT3 racer: the V12 Vantage GT3. Based off the remarkable V12 Vantage and set to replace the DBRS9, this British track screamer will be using an upgraded 6.0-liter V12 engine from the standard V12 Vantage. Horsepower has been increased from 510 to 600. The engine has been mated to a 6-speed Xtrac paddle-operated gearbox and race-honed ABS and traction control. The car will weigh less than 2.5 tons and hit top speeds of about 194 MPH. Only 26 examples will be built with deliveries starting in early July. Unfortunately, James Bond won't be driving any of them. But, if he were to drive one, it would look like this: no drama, no decals, no nothing. Just pure Quantum Silver metallic paint so that he can blend in with the crowd in order to achieve first place. How cool would that be?

A Bugatti Veyron GT-1?

2011 Bugatti Veyron Works (Shift 2: Unleashed)

Just imagine how different motorsport would be if the earth's most powerful road car, the Bugatti Veyron, ever went into the FIA GT Racing field. Astons would never be able to catch it. Maserati and Ferrari would just give up after 5 minutes. Porsche would start making an unsuccessful competitor, and the list goes on and on. Unfortunately, there are rules and regulations that the Veyron has to meet in order to become a full-fledged race car and it meets none of them. Bugatti had the opportunity to make the Veyron meet these requirements, but they decided not to take it, lest the car loses its title as the fastest car in the world. So, in the real world, the Veyron will always remain on public roads. But, in the Shift 2 world, Veyrons will have the freedom to be driven on public roads and full-scale race tracks whether they look standard or if they've been kitted out with this GT-1 works package. It will be quite interesting to see how many races you'll win with this car tuned to the max. You'll only experience this in Shift 2: Unleashed, coming in about 2 weeks.