Super Lap Battle Finals - Buttonwillow Raceway

As defending champions of Super Lap Battle '06, we had nothing but high hopes for the Euro squad in '07. But with only five competitors defending our honor at Buttonwillow Raceway, and faced with a sea of 50 imports, our chances of victory were slight.

Due to last year's victories by GMG Racing's Porsche Cup racer and 034Motorsport's World Challenge VW Jetta, the official rules were vetoed by the import community and revisions were made to exclude purpose-built race cars. With new restrictions, our boys from GMG and 034 brought different projects, but these didn't fare as well. In fact, GMG's '03 Porsche GT2 collided with a wall and didn't have enough time for a solid run.

034Motorsport brought its etGP-winning (et 1/08) '01 Audi A4 VRT, which won the AWD lap time at our Streets of Willow track day. However, tough competition from the imports meant the 645whp turbocharged Audi VR6 finished a lowly third in class. Other competitors included WRD's Mk5 GTI, which was also third in its FWD class.

The two biggest stories of the day came from the imports as the HKS-built '03 Mitsubishi Evo broke the course record and ran 5sec faster than any other competitor. Furthermore, Twins Turbo's Mazda RX7 had an engine fire caused by an oil leak during its last timed session. Even though the fire put the car out of commission, the team still managed to win its class with another record time.

If you're interested in the results from the '07 Super Lap Battle, visit www.eurotuner.com And stay tuned for details of the '08 season, which will take place at racetracks around the US, including the Long Beach Grand Prix in April.