MINI John Cooper Works GP edition unveiled

I often wonder if there’s quite anything that MINI designers miss out on, when sketching the proportions and personalities of their little wonders that even today never fail to catch anyone’s attention on any road anywhere in the world.

And then you have the legendary John Cooper, one of the co-founders of the British premium brand, in whose memory, MINI decides to just go ahead and create a vehicle that isn’t just jaw droppingly gorgeous, but also a hyper road rocket of sorts. In fact only once before has there been anything like it, but even that wasn’t as quick as what you see before you.

Say hello to the very limited in number MINI John Cooper Works GP edition model, that the British premium brand has brought to the fore, and in doing so put a clear asphalt between itself and numerous sports cars with mighty echelons.

How exactly? Well, for a very quick introduction to the MINI John Cooper Works GP, it has just hot lapped the Nürburgring  Nordschleife circuit in just 8 minutes and 23 seconds, beating former lap times set by its very own predecessor, the MINI Cooper S with John Cooper Works kit, by almost 19 seconds.

Apart from its lecherous paint scheme and exterior body work, the MINI John Cooper Works GP uses an exclusive twin scroll turbo engine that generates phenomenal torque, a re-worked chassis for stiffer on-track handling characteristics and aerodynamic styling that is one of the key elements in giving this limited edition hyper hatch from MINI superlative balance and handling even in the most demanding situations.

MINIs have been style statements for decades, and yet the John Cooper Works GP of which just 2,000 models will go into series production manages to make any stock MINI look old fashioned and lacking on a variety of fronts. Extreme road performance body panels like its large front and rear aprons are complemented by a newly developed rear diffuser which optimises air flow around the underbody.

The ’GP‘ tags on the sides, below the front air dam and on the rear boot lid immediately give you a sense of this extreme sports edition’s potential. The racing technology engineered limited edition MINI earns its true credentials as a genuine street legal super hatch owing to its 137.89PS strong twin scroll turbo engine, which has already proven its mettle on the world’s most challenging race track.

Following in the footsteps of its predecessor, the MINI John Cooper Works GP is nothing short of being the most exciting and blitzy small car ever made. It was unveiled at Le Castellet in France, venue for the MINI United festival.