Ever since the Hennessey Venom GT ended its production run, we wondered when we’d see a follow up to the infamous car that challenged the venerable Bugatti Veyron for ultimate top speed rights. Well, we can officially stop waiting as the F5, Hennessey’s successor to the Venom, officially broke cover today at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The boutique supercar took its first bow to show-goers gathered at Shell’s outdoor exhibit to much fanfair. John Hennessey himself introduced the car and the whole Hennessey family was on hand for the occasion. The Texas native got right to the point with the car and in turn didn’t give us a whole lot of exact specifications. However, he did reveal that the car will be a real threat for the top speed record yet again.

“We’ve designed the F5 to be timeless so that in 25 years it will still have a level of performance and design that will be unmatched,” Hennessey said. “The F5 is an all-new car, designed and built from the ground up, from the engine to the chassis. We expect the Venom F5, named for the most powerful tornado speed winds on the Fujita scale, to be the first road car capable of achieving more than 300 mph and have worked closely with Pennzoil to get us across the finish line.”

As Hennessey mentioned, everything on the car was started as a clean sheet. This allegedly means the motor as well, though we have a strong feeling that it is based on the LS architecture just as the previous model before it was. What we do know is that the twin turbo mill will make an insane 1,600 horsepower.

We’ll have to wait to get a closer look under the deck lid before we can say for sure, but many supercar producers have claimed to have a bespoke engine when in actuality it was an LS built to their exacting specifications–which we strongly suspect may be the case here. We’re also curious to see if it will incorporate some of the LT’s direct injection technology, though only time will tell. Regardless, it is a potent mill that should do some serious damage.

John admitted that the Venom’s limitation, however, wasn’t the lack of horsepower. It was the drag coefficient, which he told the audience measured in at a very respectable 0.44. The F5, on the other hand, measures in at just .33–a significant decrease that, when combined with the serious bump in horsepower, should equate to speeds near 300 mph.

That top speed is merely theoretical at this point, something that even Hennessey himself admitted has limitations and hurdles to be overcome to actually be attainable. One of the main limiting factors on a run for 300 mph would be the tires. There currently aren’t very many options for someone wanting to achieve a top speed that high.

Theoretically, at 300 mph, the wheels and tires would be turning roughly 3,200 rpm–which may not sound like a lot when compared to engine RPM, but translates to almost 4,000 G’s of centrifugal force. Needless to say, the tires would have to be up to the task of taking such brute forces. Though we have no doubt that this beast has what it takes to go almost 300, the technology still might have a little ways to go to get the F5 there.

Hennessey mentioned that the F5 was named after the fiercest of all tornados–a category 5. Tornados given this classification are capable of producing winds ranging from 260 to 320 mph, making it the perfect moniker for the car since its speeds should match.

And speaking of speed, the F5 should be capable of making the sprint to 186 mph under 10 seconds making it quicker than current Formula 1 cars. The jaunt from rest to 249 mph and back to standing should be possible in under 30 seconds.

The car will not be cheap starting at $1.6 million, but compared to the Bugatti Chiron’s exorbitant $2.6 million sticker price, it’s a downright steal. The Bugatti will yet again be the Hennessey’s main source of competition, though marques such as Koenigsegg are also vying for top bragging rights.

We think the car is gorgeous and, we don’t know about you, but it’s nice to have an American hypercar out there representing for the USA most likely propelled by LS/LT power. Hennessey says that this is merely a prototype and that he hopes to have two development cars on the road by early 2018. Start saving.