Maserati MCXtrema is a mad MC20‑based track toy

Indeed, the MCXtrema’s aesthetic lives up to the name, with a re-profiled front end featuring a giant mouth, splitter and hood vent, with token day-running lights down low. The trident sits loud and proud in the centre of the mouth as you’d expect. On the side, some of the elegance of the MC20 has been swapped for all-out aggression, with a floor-to-roof side vent gulping in the air to cool and feed that hopped-up Nettuno V6. Viewed directly from the back, it’s all vents, wing and diffuser, with the lights just integrated into the hard body lines.

So what about that V6? The MCXtrema obviously uses a version of the MC20’s twin-turbo 3.0-litre V6 engine, albeit hopped up to 730PS. Though details of the hop-up aren’t freely available, the lack of particulate filters and cats will have given an enormous amount of freedom for tuning. This at the very least, along with enhanced cooling in preparation for flat-out track work too, are dead certs.

The cabin is obviously full racer, stripped out with buckets, window nets, a cage, a race-spec wheel with controls and monitoring and enormous panels of controls flanking the driver. Happily, those are two sturdy-looking air-con vents above the wheel, too.

"Maserati MCXtrema was created with the aim of offering an incredibly exclusive product that can set a new paradigm for our track cars,” said Davide Grasso, Maserati CEO. 

“The project is dedicated to a selected clientèle who are particularly attentive to distinctive details, ranging from the most refined and innovative design to exceptional performance. MCXtrema embodies the sporting spirit typical of Maserati's DNA, a declaration of a new pathway for our brand, devoted to superlative manufacturing and able to stand out in the world of luxury engine production with uncompromising performance".

Just 62 of these are to be made, with Maserati obviously drawing a parallel to the last most extreme supercar it made, the MC12. Price? A cool £936,000, if you please. Colour us tempted… by the Mustang GTD for £700,000 less. Joking aside, this Maser will no doubt be a serious bit of kit.