Hennessey Venom F5 sets Circuit of the Americas lap record

Texas-based hypercar manufacturer Hennessey’s Venom F5 Revolution has set a new road car lap record at the Circuit of The Americas (COTA) with a rapid 2:10.90 lap of the 3.41-mile-long racetrack.

The previous lap record, set by a Czinger C2, was broken by 0.43 seconds and the 1,016 metre long back straight of the COTA saw the Venom F5 Revolution get up to 193.10mph. Powered by a 1,817bhp twin-turbocharged 6.6-litre V8 and piloted by Hennessey’s in-house test driver David Donohue, the Venom F5 has not only demonstrated blistering speed - accelerating 0-124mph in 4.7 seconds - but has shown to be extremely effective in braking at speeds of almost 200mph.

Hennessey’s VP of Engineering Brian Jones led the set up of the track-focused Revolution to specifically be able to tackle the 3.41-mile long circuit. Compared to its Coupe sibling, the Revolution is lighter (1,360kg) and features a full-width rear mounted carbon fibre wing, a significantly larger front splitter and rear diffuser, plus reworked, suspension, engine cooling, and digital telemetry. Among other features is a roof-mounted central air scoop that delivers cool air to the F5’s engine.

Around 100 miles from COTA, Hennessey’s HQ in Sealy, Texas sees the design, spec and assembly of each Venom F5. So far, the company has built 22 Venom F5 Coupe, Roadster and Revolution models to customers in the US and around the world.

So what is the next challenge for Hennessey? Finding a runway or public road long enough to enable the Venom to accelerate beyond 300mph and return safely to a standstill. We’ll keep our eyes peeled for that.

words: Mike Booth
pictures & video: Hennessey