Bentley wants you to believe that the new Supersports is a direct descendant of the 1925 hot rod of the same name. The new model bowed 100 years after the O.G. Super Sports was the first Bentley to break 100 mph, a lineage that makes for a tidy storyline. But the connection gets tenuous, particularly since Bentley motorcars following the brand’s 1998 acquisition by the Volkswagen Group tended to be heavy, stately grand tourers.
The Supersports name was resuscitated in 2009 and again in 2017. But a serious shakeup occurred when Frank-Steffen Walliser joined Bentley’s C-suite in 2024. The former Porsche guru envisioned a more driver-focused Bentley, one perhaps closer in spirit to the Motorsports programs he spearheaded or the 918 Spyder hypercar he shepherded. Transforming the already potent Continental GT into an entirely different kind of beast required extreme measures.
Removing the hybrid system and enlarging turbos was the first step, lending the powertrain a lighter, more purist-pleasing linearity. Next, the rear seats and all-wheel drive system were ditched for a two-seater rear-drive setup, contributing to a remarkable weight loss of 1,000 pounds.
Carbon fiber trim parts visually drive home the lightweighting message, with functional benefits including 661 more pounds of downforce than the Continental Speed. Supersports also benefits from the largest production brakes in the world: massive 440mm carbon-silicon-carbide front stoppers clamped by 10-piston calipers. With only two examples in existence outside of Crewe, duPont REGISTRY was invited to an exclusive first drive at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.
Our testers were finished in two striking liveries: a side-to-side paint fade that transitions from red to black, and an anthracite finish with camel and bronze accents. With Bentley flack Jonathan Smedley in the (left) passenger seat, I set out to explore the Supersports’ limits on Laguna’s glorious 2.238-mile series of kinks, sweepers, and the 5 ½-story drop that makes the infamous Corkscrew.
At idle, Supersports makes a pleasant burble thanks to its cross-plane crankshaft and titanium Akrapovič exhaust system. Unlike the exterior’s extroverted splitter, vents, and fixed one-piece rear spoiler, the cabin flies a bit more under the radar. Unlike the first generation Supersports which boasted available carbon fiber bucket seats from the Bugatti Veyron, the new model’s lightweight perches are more terrestrial – comfortable and supportive, but not exotic.
Standard carbon veneers bring a sense of purposefulness, while Dinamica accents on seating surfaces assist backside grip while exploring the hardest cornering roadgoing Bentley in history: the wide-sitting flying B pulls a 1.3 lateral Gs when riding on optional Pirelli Trofeo RS tires. There’s still a bit of poshness within the cabin, from leather-trimmed surfaces to 22 available hide colors and nine accent hides. Over your shoulder, the carbon-lined rear compartment offers a glimpse of square-cornered modernity against the otherwise organically formed interior features.
Click the faceted mode selector into Sport and the leather-wrapped shifter into Drive, and the Supersports responds to throttle squeezes with guttural grunt. While not as overtly loud as you might expect, the soundscape is deep and refined in the spirit of past Supersports generations.
Though the Supersports can accelerate to 62 mph in 3.6 seconds, the Speed model’s all-wheel drive and superior output of 771 hp can launch it to highway speeds quicker. However, Supersports’ advantages come with its predictable power delivery and cornering skills: stab the left pedal and the 2-ton coupé decelerates like no other Bentley with a license plate.
Speed is scrubbed off by the carbon-silicon-carbide binders so effectively that it requires recalibrating your braking entry points. The relative width of Laguna Seca’s corners encourage more creativity in terms of vehicle placement, and Jonathan Smedley suggests coming into the throttle a little bit early in order to let the electronic rear differential do its magic, helping the vehicle rotate through strategic torque distribution.
Supersports turns into corners responsively, thanks in part to the e-diff’s brake vectoring and the thousand-pound weight savings. The sticky Pirelli Trofeo RSs at all fours deliver significant grip, and the retuned Dynamic Ride suspension’s 48-volt active anti-roll system gives this Bentley good body control feel and flat cornering. The system can apply over 950 lb-ft of torque to the roll bars to counter the body’s desire to list, helping the Supersports feel even lighter than its already slimmed-down mass.
Aiding stability is a four-wheel steering system that turns the rear wheels in phase with the fronts. Unlike all-wheel-drive Continental GTs, Supersports doesn’t tend to claw its way out of corners through sophisticated torque distribution across all fours; instead it takes a more conventional approach along with a bit of driver trust that the e-diff will help it out of the corner. But there’s a fine line; dump too much throttle on, and the rear will slide. Exit a corner too gingerly, and precious speed is lost.
Our handlers didn’t allow journalists to switch into Dynamic Handling mode, which would have loosened the reins on the electronic stability control and sent more wheelspinning power to the rear wheels. As such, I could feel the electronic differential helping rotate the car and lay power down to the wheels, but my ability to shoot out of corners aggressively was hampered by the system at lower speeds. This effect was especially pronounced on turn 11, a tight, slow left-hander that leads onto the main straight.
Though the Supersports is capable of tail slides at various spots on the circuit – an endearing capability that speaks to its lusty heart – being locked out of full power at low speeds when Dynamic Mode is engaged curtails the fun a bit too much. I can only assume the uncorked setting would be a riotous (and quicker) way to get around a racetrack.
Despite the safety police putting a bit of a damper on the high-speed antics in an effort to preserve the only two examples outside of the factory, Supersports still managed to thrill with its immense braking capabilities, quick direction changes, and engaging thrust that makes solid work of one of the world’s most iconic racetracks.
While a track-capable Bentley isn’t for everyone, Supersports scratches a performance itch that has the power to bring a whole new type of buyer to the brand. And as Bentley brass have hinted, there will be more hardcore spinoffs that will arise from the Supersports formula, enough to perhaps tempt the 500 customers who have sold out the model into adding another raucous Bentley to the fleet.
IMAGES COURTESY OF BENTLEY
