5. Mikoyan Ye-152 (1,883 mph)

• Top Speed: 1,883 mph
• Max Flight Distance: 913 miles

At the height of the Cold War, the Soviet Union designed two single-engine fighter jets in a bid to claim airspeed superiority. As such, the purpose was to see what the limits were in world air-speed records.

Sadly, a crash in 1995 led to the demise of the Ye-152A test craft.

4. North American XB-70 Valkyrie (2,050 mph)

• Top Speed: 2,050 mph
• Max Flight Distance: 3,725 miles

Performance aside, the XB-70 has to be one of the most aesthetically pleasing fighter crafts ever designed. Also, its legacy would end up being something entirely different from what it was intended to do.

3. The MiG-25 Foxbat (2,170 mph)

• Top Speed: 2,170 mph
• Max Flight Distance: 1,075 miles

As NATO’s F-4 Phantom II was flexing its wings as the most dangerous aerial combatant in the world, the Soviet Union was in the lab cooking up a worthy adversary for the Phantom: the MiG-25 Foxbat.

2. The Lockheed YF-12 (2,275 mph)

• Top Speed: 2,275 mph
• Max Flight Distance: 3,000 miles

The Lockheed YF-12 definitely deserves its position in the jet fighter hall-of-fame as the legendary SR-71 Blackbird draws its inspiration from it.

1. Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird (2,500 mph)

• Top Speed: 2,500 mph
• Max Flight Distance: 3,337 miles

Ask any aerospace enthusiast, and they will tell you that the SR-71 blackbird is among their most favorite fighter jets, and with good reason; it is in a class of its own.

5. Ferrari F60 America ($2.5M)

The supercar is mechanically identical to the F12, but the Berlinetta isn’t exactly a Fiat Panda to begin with. Its 6.2-liter V12 churns out 740 glorious hp, enough to propel the car to 60 mph in only 3.1 seconds. The ultra-rare flag-waver hearkens back to Ferrari’s bespoke past, as the company built several region-specific sports cars in the 1950s and 1960s.

4. Mansory Vivere Bugatti Veyron ($3.4M)

This list wouldn’t be complete without some version of the mighty Bugatti Veyron. We’re shining our spotlight on the the Mansory Vivere edition here, because not only is it one of the fastest cars in the world, it’s one of the most expensive.

3. W Motors Lykan Hypersport ($3.4M)

You may recall the Lykan Hypersport from its starring role in the blockbuster Furious 7, where the Lebanese supercar crashed through not one, not two, but three skyscrapers in Dubai. In a franchise filled with high-end exotics and one-off custom creations, the fact that the Hypersport got so much focus is a testament to its magnetism.

2. Lamborghini Veneno ($4.5M)

The car is absolutely stunning from every angle, and to this day, we’re not convinced it isn’t an alien spacecraft surveying our planet for eventual takeover. It just doesn’t seem real. The only thing more remarkable than the look is the price — a whopping $4.5 million.

1. Koenigsegg CCXR Trevita ($4.8M)

Underneath the lustrous finish lies a 4.8-liter, dual-supercharged V8 with a total output of 1,004 hp and 797 lb-ft, which means it should have little to no trouble overtaking semis on the freeway. The car’s specifications — in both performance and price — are nearly comical at this point, and just three were ever made.

1. HENNESSEY VENOM F5: 301 MPH

Boasting a claimed top speed of 301 mph, the Venom F5 smashes the previous top speed figure by more than a school zone speed limit. To do so, Hennessey started with an all-new, 2,950-pound carbon fiber chassis (the Venom GT is based on the Lotus Exige), and bolted a 1,600-hp, 7,4-liter, twin-turbo V8 to it. The results are absolutely astonishing, as the car can reportedly go from 0 to 249 to 0 mph in less than 30 seconds total. Hennessey has yet to confirm its top speed with the Guinness Book of World Records, so the Koenigsegg Agera RS remains the official fastest car in the world … for now.

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2. KOENIGSEGG AGERA RS: 278 MPH

To set the official record, Koenigsegg asked the Nevada Department of Transportation to close an 11-mile stretch of Route 160 between Las Vegas and Pahrump. On public roads, the 1,160-hp Swedish supercar hit 284.55 mph during its first run and 271.19 mph during the second, which averages out to 277.9 mph. Watch the run here.

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3. HENNESSEY VENOM GT: 270MPH

Hennessey recorded a 270.4-mph run at the Kennedy Space Center in 2014, but only in one direction. To be considered legitimate, record attempts usually require a run in each direction, and an average is taken to account for wind conditions. There’s also some debate about whether the Hennessey Venom qualifies as a production car due to its hand-built nature. Hennessey’s monster wasn’t recognized as the world’s fastest car by the Guinness Book of World Records.

4. BUGATTI CHIRON: 261 MPH

No list is complete without a supercar from the legendary Bugatti. The Veyron was a monumental feat of engineering, a supercar whose performance was so marvelous, Top Gear presenter James May compared it to the automobile equivalent of the Concorde. After 10 years of production, the Volkswagen Group has unveiled the Veyron’s successor, the Bugatti Chiron. The Chiron is a king among supercars, which is fitting, as kings will be among the few to obtain one — only 500 were released for the first generation, and they cost a staggering $2.6 million each.

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5. BUGATTI VEYRON SUPER SPORT: 268 MPH

When Volkswagen purchased the Bugatti brand, it had one goal: build the fastest production car in the world. The original Veyron achieved that goal, and with a price tag of $1.7 million and a quad-turbocharged W16 engine producing 1,000 hp. The Veyron was soon dethroned by the SSC Ultimate Aero, so Bugatti came back with the Veyron Super Sport.

With a top speed of 268 mph recorded at Volkswagen’s test track, the Veyron Super Sport was once recognized as the world’s second fastest production car by the Guinness Book of World Records.

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Thanks for joining me!

Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton