The Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series is already the fastest production car around the Nürburgring

Rumours had been circulating for weeks, whispers had been heard, and some witnesses claimed to have seen it with their own eyes, but until today it had not been made official: the Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series is the new king of the Nürburgring circuit, with driver Maro Engel at the wheel to make it happen.

https://youtu.be/hMBL497zPhA

The new record time on the Green Hell set by the Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series on 4 November was 6:43.616 on the Nordschleife in its 20.6 km configuration. For the longer layout, which includes the now-famous T13 sector and adds 232 metres, making it 20,832 metres, the time was 6:48.047.

The car that beat the previous record is a production example, that is, one built on the standard assembly line, exactly as it leaves the factory and holding the homologation that allows it to be driven on ordinary public roads. The only change is the fitting of high-performance tyres, MICHELIN Pilot Sport Cup 2 R MO.

The brutal Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series is the most extreme version of the Mercedes-AMG sports car, apart from its siblings built for the FIA GT3 competition category.

Whatever the case, the car, in the hands of professional driver Maro Engel, 35 years old, winner of several championships and races such as the DTM or Formula E, not to mention the 24 Hours of Nürburgring, managed to take the 730 CV beast, derived from the twin-turbo V8 engine, and improve on the previous time held by the Lamborghini Aventador SVJ, which set a 6:44.97 in July 2018.

The eternal controversy continues

Once again, we return to the question of the distinction between a series-production car and a road-registered one, because, given what has been said, the fastest car homologated for public roads is still the Porsche 911 GT2 RS MR, which set a lap of 6:44.749 on the long layout a few months after the Aventador SVJ milestone, also not free of controversy but validated by the circuit itself as such.

The Porsche unit, despite carrying the relevant number plates that allow it to drive on any street or road, is a modified car built from a standard Porsche 911 GT2 RS, but it underwent a revision in the hands of Manthey Racing, a specialist in Porsche and motorsport who modified the example without losing its status as a car capable of going out on a Sunday to buy bread as well as taking part in private track sessions or track days.