Our week of Italian supercar specials comes to a close today with one of the most interesting of the year: Lamborghini’s limited edition Gallardo LP550-2 Valentino Balboni.
 
That’s a long name for Lambo’s smallest and least powerful current car, but its appeal lies beyond pure numbers and figures. It’s the first supercar from Sant’Agata in over a decade to be driven only by its rear wheels, making this a lighter and twitchier machine than the Gallardo LP560-4 it’s based on.
 
The result is a far sharper road and track weapon, as our videos (links below) testify. With those stripes and stealthy paint, it’s a whole lot cooler too. A great testament to Valentino Balboni – the legendary Lambo test driver whose retirement the car commemorates.
 
See Chris Harris’s video of the Gallardo LP550 from eCoty 2009
 
Watch the Balboni in action at this year’s evo Track Car of the Year
 
Read Ollie Marriage’s first road test of the rwd Lamborghini Gallardo
 
See highlights of Roger Green and Andy Wallace racing a Lambo
 
Read the feature as Rog drives the LP550-2 to the Super Trofeo race
 
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