It took place on a Saturday at lunchtime, the day of the qualifiers. Security was tight, the track looked immaculate and there was already a buzz building from the early bird spectators. As we listened to our safety briefing in the pits, I spotted a familiar face among my fellow hot lappers. It turned out to be Dominic Howard, the drummer from rock band Muse, who were headlining that night. I was in good company.
The track was already starting to heat up and the smell of burning rubber was in the air. So, this was what it felt like to be an F1 driver — apart from the thick boiler suit, racing gloves and hordes of screaming fans, of course. I was introduced to my driver for the hot lap, a tall and friendly looking Italian whose name I instantly forgot in my excited state. Having heard he was a former winner at the Le Mans 24-hour race, I knew I was in safe and experienced hands.
Our weapon of mass acceleration was the Lamborghini Huracán EVO, the latest in a long line of beautiful and jaw-dropping supercars from the Italian brand, now owned by Volkswagen. I so much wanted to get in the driver’s side, but I was quickly directed to the passenger side of the car and buckled in. There was hardly any time to survey my surroundings and get comfortable, as we were off in no time.
The phrase “break-neck speed” pretty much sums up the sensation I felt as we pulled away with more G-force than I have felt in a long time. The Huracán EVO can go from a standing start to 100kph in just 2.9 seconds. But, of course, we were not stopping at 100kph. Oh no. We quickly climbed up to 200kph, which takes about nine seconds, which was just about long enough for my neck to recover from the blistering pull-away.
It takes under two minutes for an F1 racing car to do one lap of the Singapore Grand Prix circuit (the fastest recorded lap at this year’s race was one minute 42 seconds by Kevin Magnussen for Haas-Ferrari). I was told the Huracán EVO would take an additional minute. While that might sound like a lot, you have to remember this is a luxurious supercar meant for public roads, not a purpose-built, one-seater racing car that costs more than $10 million to build.
The length of the Singapore track is 5km and features no fewer than 23 turns. This provided plenty of (perhaps a little too much) opportunity to feel the braking power as we entered the multiple corners and the torque as we sped out of them. The video footage taken by the GoPro on the dashboard showed my face in a permanent state of shock, with the occasional smile breaking out. This was seat-of-your-pants stuff.
While I was in shock, I also had time to be in awe of man and machine, as the Huracán EVO hugged the safety barriers and took the corners in the smoothest way you could imagine at such high speeds. When you experience doing it in two minutes and 50 seconds in a supercar, it is probably the closest thing you will ever get to the real thing, feeling like Lewis Hamilton or Sebastian Vettel on a Sunday night. I will be honest and say my head was spinning when I got out, and it took me a good 10 minutes to recover my composure. But the smile on my face remained as I relived the hot lap in my head. It was one of the most amazing driving experiences I had ever had.
I have driven a Lamborghini Gallardo around the Malaysian GP track in Sepang before, but this was a whole new level. Anyone thinking of buying this thoroughbred supercar should do a hot lap first, just to see what it is capable of. Even when you are not in the driving seat, you will be left in awe at the speed and power available. While that may be only a fraction of what you will use in day-to-day driving, it is nice to know it is there.
And as we all know, owning a supercar in Singapore is less about performance and more about appearance. Thankfully, the Huracán EVO is as beautiful as it is fast. Now, when I take it for a proper test drive on the roads of Singapore, I may recreate that unforgettable hot lap. Or perhaps not!
Lamborghini Huracán EVO
$998,000 excluding COE
Engine: 5,204cc, V10
Power/torque: 640hp/600Nm
Fuel consumption: 13.7L/100km
0 to 100kph: 2.9 seconds
Top speed: More than 325kph
Justin Harper is a freelance journalist with a passion for all things fast
