TO SHRINK LAP TIMES, CUT THE WIND

How important are aerodynamics to the modern supercar? Consider this: Thanks to some serious downforce — Lamborghini claims an almost eightfold increase over the base car — the fastest car around the Nurburgring is the new Performante version of the Huracan, which is able to circumnavigate the Nordschleife’s famed 160 turns in just 6:52.01.

That not only makes the slippery Huracan faster than any of its junior supercar competition, it also toppled the previous king of quick, Porsche’s mighty 918. Now here’s the thing. The Huracan, even in souped-up Performante guise, has 631 horsepower, less than any of the competitive set — the McLaren 720S, the 488 Ferrari and the Ford GT, six cylinders or no — and scads less than the 887-hp 918. In other words, the GT not having class-leading horsepower doesn’t mean diddly squat.