Scott Speed Shatters Mount Washington Hillclimb Record in Project Midnight

The victory marks the fifth consecutive record-breaking appearance for Subaru Motorsports USA at the historic New Hampshire event. While the team had spent the weekend acclimating to the 7.6-mile course, Sunday’s unpredictable mountain weather forced a high-stakes finale. Thick fog at the summit compelled organizers to truncate morning runs, leaving the afternoon ascent as the only window for drivers to secure a full-course time. Speed capitalized on the opening, leveraging the car’s aggressive aerodynamics and a bespoke set of Yokohama ADVAN A005 slick tires designed specifically for the climb’s intense, short-burst requirements.

Project Midnight, a lightweight machine engineered by Vermont SportsCar, proved perfectly suited to the transition from the mixed-surface conditions that defined previous records to the current paved layout. Speed, drawing on his background in Formula One and rallycross, described the run as a significant mental test, noting that the combination of variable visibility and the sheer speed of the ascent left little room for error. This performance effectively eclipses the 5:28.67 record set by Travis Pastrana in 2021, further establishing the Project Midnight WRX as the fastest iteration of the platform ever built by the manufacturer.