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Sometimes it's amazing what you can do without even trying. See, Koenigsegg recently took its ballistic One:1 to Japan's Suzuka circuit to share it with "clients and partners in a more personal sense," and it's done a lap in 2:17.57, unofficially beating current leader Nissan GT-R's 2:18.36.

Consider the following. Factory driver Robert Serwanski had never driven at Suzuka before. They only had half an hour on the track, and Serwanski did 20 laps, all with a passenger beside him. The One:1 was running on a "standard setup" with factory tyres and only minor aero modifications. It wasn't even running on E85, the Koenigsegg high-power fuel.

"Our best recorded lap time in this half-hour slot was 2:17.57," said Christian von Koenigsegg. "This is from our own data-logging system, connected to the car on the day. It is not an official time and has no external standing."

What does Serwanski have to say? "The car performed extremely well but there's no doubt that with more time invested in getting to know the track and the optimal setup, it could go much faster.

"We had to take care of the brakes a little. It was an oversight on our part, but we didn't put new pads in before shipping the car to Japan and we didn't bring fresh pads with us. Hard braking was an issue as a result, which will influence the speed at which you approach a corner.

While we were carrying an extra person in the car in all of our laps, this wasn't a big factor. It does affect your steering and braking at the limit, but we were not at the limit today. The confidence to be at the limit requires a lot more knowledge of the intricacies of the track and that only comes with hours and hours of time on the tarmac."

The Koenigsegg One:1 is so called because of its one PS per kg power-to-weight ratio. Its 5.0 litre twin-turbo V8 produces a staggering 1,360 PS, or exactly one megawatt. Peak torque is 1,371 Nm, and all of that goes to the rear wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox.

The numbers aren't official, but the company reckons the six-unit-only monster can do 0-100 km/h in 2.8 seconds, 0-400 km/h in 20 seconds and a top speed in excess of 440 km/h. Watch it race an eight-tonne Volvo truck here - no kidding.