Alfa Romeo Pandion by Bertone

Stile Bertone Alfa Romeo Pandion concept

he Corvette ZR1-based Bertone Mantide could be making a run at the Corvette ZR1's Nurburgring lap time according to Bertone's chief designer Jason Castriota. The first owner of the $2 million Mantide, British-born financier and "gentleman racer" Dan Watkins is considering making a run at the Corvette ZR1's 7:26.4 Nurburgring lap time and Castriota thinks that goal is obtainable.

Alpha Romeo Bertone BAT 11 concept at the Concorso Italiano grounds the night before the show.

As it currently stands, there is only one Bertone Mantide in the world. You would think that the owner of a $2 million prototype would keep the car safely tucked away in a special garage as a kind of trophy piece and never place it in harm's way. But alas, it is not so with one Dan Watkins, a British 'gentleman racer' and financier, who is tentatively planning on putting his car to the true test of performance benchmarking by taking on the Nurburgring track record set by the Corvette ZR1.

Having a Lamborghini or Ferrari are not necessarily the hottest toys on the block, especially if somebody else turns up in this Mantide. It gets more eyeballs than any other car on the planet right now and all of that is down to the way this thing looks.