One of Mark Stielow’s finest pro touring Camaros which he dubbed “Hellfire” is a pro touring tour de force. With 957hp under the hood, all of the accumulated years of Mark’s suspension development work, modern technology brimming from every corner and fit/finish like a coach built machine the Camaro is in a class by itself. We should rephrase that. It is in a class well beyond a Porsche as is shown in the video where Mark runs a Porsche down in Hellfire like said German uber car is tied to a stump. He graciously calls it the “pesky Porsche” in his video and the only pesky thing is the fact that the driver didn’t want to be passed so he turned the car into a rolling road block, weaving back and forth across the track in a vain attempt to keep Mark behind him. Thankfully horsepower and skill came together to blow that sucker right off the track in one fell swoop when the opportunity presented itself.
While this was at a track day and not some sort of an official race, the patience and control Mark showed here really is the signature of an experienced races. If he tried to jam the car into a place where he shouldn’t have or if he really tried to push the guy in the Porsche aggressively one car could have ended up in a ball or perhaps both. By staying close and biding his time, Mark didn’t score the best lap time of the day but he did make a pass, get into clear real estate and escape unscathed. Normally in races it’ll happen were a guy will totally get over aggressive and not only end his day but the days of others because of an error in judgement.
Mark knew he had this guppy swallowed!
The Porsche was simply driving the racing line in at a brisk pace .There was no attempt to block and I would suggest the car was being driven nowhere near it’s potential. It appears to be just a track day and that is not to be confused with or equated with actual racing. Tone down the hyperbole guys.
other then that tail wiggle at 1:00? he should have gotten out of the race line at least 1 corner prior…. that said, I’m not sure Mark would have gone around if it hadn’t been for the wiggle – the last place you want to be is right behind some who loses it in a corner. And with that said, I think what most are concerned about is when Mark nails it, the Porsche doesn’t let him pass and forces Mark to take a tighter line on that jog.
and my disclaimer – it’s what I saw in 1:28s, context is important, if that was a race between Mark and the Porsche – then all is fair in that video….
Simply driving the racing line? Seriously? There is also such a thing as normal race courtesy. To say that the guy in the Porsche didn’t know what was behind him and therefore not obligated to move over as is normal race courtesy is simply ridiculous. Or could it be one butt hurt Porsche lover defending another one?
Hi guys. Context is everything. IF this is a track day as the article claims and it appears to be THEN IT IS NOT A RACE! . Track days have sanctioning bodies requiring insurance and therefore rules. One standard rule is designated passing zones usually on one or two of the track’s longer straights. There is no need to let someone pass on any other part of the track! Even time attack competitions have designated passing zones .The exception to this would be if it was a private track with private track members going at it but even they require cautious passing. . I was commenting on the facts before me as compared to the over the top commentary in the article making it seem like a bare knuckle brawl between a hero in his good ol’ American iron vs some faceless furriner.