After 26 years, there’s a new King of Speed at Daytona International Speedway.
Colin Braun drove a Riley Technologies Daytona Prototype race car, powered by the new 3.5-liter, V-6 Ford EcoBoost race engine, to a new Daytona single lap speed record of 358.83 kph during a special record run attempt, topping the 26-year-old speed record of 338.54 kph set by Bill Elliott in a Ford Thunderbird during qualifying for the 1987 Daytona 500.
Braun and the Michael Shank Racing team also set new world speed records for 16 km from a standing start (338 kph average), and 16 kilometers from a standing start (325.79 kph average). All times from today’s session are subject to Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) homologation.
Braun, at 25 years of age, wasn’t even born when Elliott set the previous speed record. But he knows the significance of what was accomplished during today’s speed trials.
“It was a challenging day,” said Braun afterward. “There was a lot of work put in by a lot of people to accomplish these records. The power in the new EcoBoost engine was incredible, and it was amazing how fast it came up to speed on the runs.
“Our first run this morning was 336 kph, and it was an edgy drive at that speed. I can only imagine how edgy it was for Bill Elliott doing those speeds in his Thunderbird stock car. But our crew kept working and adjusting on it, and it was a great feeling coming down pit road after the record runs and seeing how happy everyone was.”
The new Ford EcoBoost engine was prepared for the record run by Ford Racing engine partner Roush Yates Engines, and Continental Tires did a special tire for the run that was lighter and had less rolling resistance than the standard race tire, along with a harder compound than the tire used for a typical road course race.
Both the new car and new twin-turbo engine will compete in the 2014 Tudor United SportsCar Championship that kicks off with the Rolex 24 at Daytona in January.
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