• Czinger reclaimed Laguna Seca’s lap record from Koenigsegg again.
  • The two brands have now traded the record five times since 2021.
  • This time it wasn’t close, with Czinger ahead by nearly two seconds.

If you’ve lost track of who owns the production car lap record at Laguna Seca, don’t stress. So has everyone else outside of Koenigsegg and Czinger because only those two have gone at it for almost half of the decade. Now, it’s traded hands once more, and it wasn’t particularly close.

This particular saga started back in July 2021, when Czinger shocked the industry by running a 1:25.44 in its not-yet-production-ready 21C, beating the McLaren Senna’s long-standing benchmark.

Koenigsegg eventually responded in August 2024 during Monterey Car Week with a 1:24.86 lap in the Jesko, only for Czinger to return days later and shave it down to 1:24.75.

More: Laguna Seca Noise Concerns Muffled As Neighbors Drop Lawsuit

Earlier this year, Czinger took a production-spec 21C across the country and set five lap records, including one at Laguna Seca, where it scored a 1:24.39. Koenigsegg poured cold water over that when it announced a new record of just 1:24.16.

Well, things just turned back over, and Czinger is back on top, again.

The boutique carmaker just announced a new lap record of 1:22.30. That’s nearly two full seconds faster than the Koenigsegg. We’re not talking about long-standing hypercar builders like Lamborghini and Ferrari either. Both Koenigsegg and, even more so, Czinger are relatively new players in the space.

The latter is maybe the best example in the business of walking quietly and carrying a big stick. Forget all the hype, the team is just putting up ridiculous lap times.

Back in November, when it lost the record, Czinger publicly made it clear that they would go back and try to recapture the top spot. That kind of attitude and follow-through is somewhat rare in the supercar world.

This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record
This Tiny American Carmaker Just Crushed Koenigsegg’s Record

Czinger

That said, it’s worth noting that Koenigsegg’s most recent record-breaking lap was done with a hobbled car. The team had to run on a low-noise day where cars weren’t allowed to make more than 90 dB of sound.

To that end, the car had to have a wacky-looking muffler added to the rear, in addition to heavier-than-usual wheels. In other words, don’t be shocked if Koenigsegg is already planning a return trip.

At the end of the day, the real winners are all the fans and especially the one percenters who can buy cars like these. Clearly, competition has pushed each team to stretch its performance envelope.

Now we just wait to see if McMurtry can get their Spéirling into production in 2026. If it does, don’t expect anything, including from Koenigsegg or Czinger, to beat it in this decade.