It’s been quite the tease. Maserati has been dangling the MC20 carrot — its first mid-engined sports car in more than two decades — for a number of years, but it’s been worth the wait.
Without question, this is the best-in-its-segment Italian sports car I have driven in nearly a decade, offering ballistic performance in a lightweight body made from carbon fibre that, in comparison to its supercar competitors, does away with the “look-at-me” wings, body kits and shouty exhausts.
It still has a luscious note when you give its twin-turbocharged, three-litre V6 a boot, but it acts like a grown-up, leaving the noisy, flame-spitting theatrics to the rent-a-supercar crowd.
The Maserati MC20 manages to tick off the supercar boxes while remaining dignified and classy, which is in keeping with the marque's heritage as the thinking person’s sports car.
This is also the first Maserati in a long time to go it alone and not lean on Ferrari for engineering help with its Nettuno V6 engine to be produced from start to finish in its own factory in Modena. The carbon-fibre chassis and aluminium subframes for the suspension and engine, meanwhile, are made in collaboration with Italian race car manufacturer Dallara.
The car is partly an homage to the glorious MC12 — MC stands for Maserati Corse — which was made as an offshoot of the Ferrari Enzo in 2004 to compete in the FIA GT world championship. Only 50 were produced, however, and it won 40 races from 94 starts.
While the MC12 was built to race with a minimum number made for the road to satisfy the rules at the time, this Dh1 million super coupe is made for the road first, so it offers more comfort. It will also be produced in significantly higher numbers, including a convertible version, and we may also see it on the track eventually.
There will also be a full EV all-wheel-drive alternative coming, which will eventually take the bulk of sales. Grab this combustion engine MC20 while you can, because when nearly all MC20s you will see in years to come will be silent EVs — you’ll have one of these gas-guzzling, but desirably spine-tingling, rear-wheel-drive petrol versions.
In addition to its blisteringly quick acceleration that got us from 0 to 100 kilometres per hour in under three seconds, the MC20's handling was race-car sharp. This is not surprising given Dallara’s background as the sole manufacturer for chassis that race in Indycar, Formula 2, Formula 3, LeMans and the Daytona 24-hour races.
It’ll also get you from 0-200kph in 8.8 seconds and has a top speed of 325kph.
Yet, despite the MC20's outstanding performance, its ride was refined. With the adaptive suspension in its most comfortable mode, it soaked up bumps well enough to consider driving it daily or taking it on a road trip. It’s one of the few supercars I could sit comfortably in for more than an hour at a time.
The tiny cabin has a minimalist theme with few gauges and buttons, yet is nicely padded with plenty of leather and Alcantara trim throughout. Access is via upward-swinging butterfly doors, which takes a bit of skill to refine when you include the wide step to cross over the monocoque chassis and into the seat.
A 10.3-inch touchscreen debuts Maserati’s new operating system, which is the first to break away from the Uconnect unit used by Stellantis (Fiat-Chrysler), and is now powered by Google Android.
The touchscreen is tucked under the air vents in the centre console, while a second 10.3-inch display serves as the gauge cluster in front of the driver.
To help solve the issue of rearward visibility, the MC20 features a digital rear-view mirror that uses a rear-facing camera to feed an image of what's behind the car to a frameless mirror mounted in the usual place inside, top and centre.
It’s been a long time coming, but Maserati’s return to the supercar world on its own terms and without Ferrari’s input for the first time in decades is a huge success, so much so it looks as though the pupil has schooled the teacher.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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The low down
Producers: Uniglobe Entertainment & Vision Films
Director: Namrata Singh Gujral
Cast: Rajkummar Rao, Nargis Fakhri, Bo Derek, Candy Clark
Rating: 2/5
MATCH INFO
Championship play-offs, second legs:
Aston Villa 0
Middlesbrough 0
(Aston Villa advance 1-0 on aggregate)
Fulham 2
Sessegnon (47'), Odoi (66')
Derby County 0
(Fulham advance 2-1 on aggregate)
Final
Saturday, May 26, Wembley. Kick off 8pm (UAE)
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
THE BIO
Age: 30
Favourite book: The Power of Habit
Favourite quote: "The world is full of good people, if you cannot find one, be one"
Favourite exercise: The snatch
Favourite colour: Blue
8 traditional Jamaican dishes to try at Kingston 21
- Trench Town Rock: Jamaican-style curry goat served in a pastry basket with a carrot and potato garnish
- Rock Steady Jerk Chicken: chicken marinated for 24 hours and slow-cooked on the grill
- Mento Oxtail: flavoured oxtail stewed for five hours with herbs
- Ackee and salt fish: the national dish of Jamaica makes for a hearty breakfast
- Jamaican porridge: another breakfast favourite, can be made with peanut, cornmeal, banana and plantain
- Jamaican beef patty: a pastry with ground beef filling
- Hellshire Pon di Beach: Fresh fish with pickles
- Out of Many: traditional sweet potato pudding
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
RESULTS
Catchweight 82kg
Piotr Kuberski (POL) beat Ahmed Saeb (IRQ) by decision.
Women’s bantamweight
Corinne Laframboise (CAN) beat Cornelia Holm (SWE) by unanimous decision.
Welterweight
Omar Hussein (PAL) beat Vitalii Stoian (UKR) by unanimous decision.
Welterweight
Josh Togo (LEB) beat Ali Dyusenov (UZB) by unanimous decision.
Flyweight
Isaac Pimentel (BRA) beat Delfin Nawen (PHI) TKO round-3.
Catchweight 80kg
Seb Eubank (GBR) beat Emad Hanbali (SYR) KO round 1.
Lightweight
Mohammad Yahya (UAE) beat Ramadan Noaman (EGY) TKO round 2.
Lightweight
Alan Omer (GER) beat Reydon Romero (PHI) submission 1.
Welterweight
Juho Valamaa (FIN) beat Ahmed Labban (LEB) by unanimous decision.
Featherweight
Elias Boudegzdame (ALG) beat Austin Arnett (USA) by unanimous decision.
Super heavyweight
Maciej Sosnowski (POL) beat Ibrahim El Sawi (EGY) by submission round 1.
How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
'Peninsula'
Stars: Gang Dong-won, Lee Jung-hyun, Lee Ra
Director: Yeon Sang-ho
Rating: 2/5
Dubai World Cup Carnival card
6.30pm: UAE 1000 Guineas Trial Conditions (TB) US$100,000 (Dirt) 1,400m
7.05pm: Handicap (TB) $135,000 (Turf) 1,000m
7.40pm: Handicap (TB) $175,000 (D) 1,900m
8.15pm: Meydan Challenge Listed Handicap (TB) $175,000 (T) 1,400m
8.50pm: Dubai Stakes Group 3 (TB) $200,000 (D) 1,200m
9.25pm: Dubai Racing Club Classic Listed Handicap (TB) $175,000 (T) 2,410m
The National selections
6.30pm: Final Song
7.05pm: Pocket Dynamo
7.40pm: Dubai Icon
8.15pm: Dubai Legacy
8.50pm: Drafted
9.25pm: Lucius Tiberius
'Outclassed in Kuwait'
Taleb Alrefai,
HBKU Press
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
RESULT
Shabab Al Ahli Dubai 0 Al Ain 6
Al Ain: Caio (5', 73'), El Shahat (10'), Berg (65'), Khalil (83'), Al Ahbabi (90' 2)
NINE WINLESS GAMES
Arsenal 2-2 Crystal Palace (Oct 27, PL)
Liverpool 5-5 Arsenal (Oct 30, EFL)
Arsenal 1-1 Wolves (Nov 02, PL)
Vitoria Guimaraes 1-1 Arsenal (Nov 6, Europa)
Leicester 2-0 Arsenal (Nov 9, PL)
Arsenal 2-2 Southampton (Nov 23, PL)
Arsenal 1-2 Eintracht Frankfurt (Nov 28, Europa)
Norwich 2-2 Arsenal (Dec 01, PL)
Arsenal 1-2 Brighton (Dec 05, PL)
Fighter profiles
Gabrieli Pessanha (Brazil)
Reigning Abu Dhabi World Pro champion in the 95kg division, virtually unbeatable in her weight class. Known for her pressure game but also dangerous with her back on the mat.
Nathiely de Jesus, 23, (Brazil)
Two-time World Pro champion renowned for her aggressive game. She is tall and most feared by her opponents for both her triangles and arm-bar attacks.
Thamara Ferreira, 24, (Brazil)
Since her brown belt days, Ferreira has been dominating the 70kg, in both the World Pro and the Grand Slams. With a very aggressive game.
Samantha Cook, 32, (Britain)
One of the biggest talents coming out of Europe in recent times. She is known for a highly technical game and bringing her A game to the table as always.
Kendall Reusing, 22, (USA)
Another young gun ready to explode in the big leagues. The Californian resident is a powerhouse in the -95kg division. Her duels with Pessanha have been highlights in the Grand Slams.
Martina Gramenius, 32, (Sweden)
Already a two-time Grand Slam champion in the current season. Gramenius won golds in the 70kg, in both in Moscow and Tokyo, to earn a spot in the inaugural Queen of Mats.
