Chapter 3

Today was the day of the scheduled grudge match between Mario and Bowser at Luigi's Raceway. The defending "champion" Bowser had already left the pit area and was sitting in his Kart at the starting line of the track where he impatiently awaited Mario's arrival.

"Where is he?" roared Bowser. "I'll bet the plumber finally came to his senses and realized it was best for him not to show up. HA!" He continued on ranting out loud to himself and didn't hear the growing rumble in the distance. Suddenly, Bowser's crew chief dropped his clip board as he saw Mario's Mach 1 Mustang roll by on the way to the starting line. "Uh-oh Bowser, I think we may be in for some trouble," he radioed to his boss. "What are you talking about you impertinent fool? Nothing can go wrong today NOTHING." With that said, he caught a glimpse of a big gold object slowly coming into his peripheral vision. A look of pure shock and awe overcame Bowser's face as his eyes meet the front fender of the Mustang. The muscle car settled to a stop at the line and Bowser noted the "Mach 1" decal striping at the bottom of the door. A sudden roar echoed throughout the stadium as Mario gunned the engine. The Koopa with the starting light quickly floated over.

3…
2…
Mario wound up the engine as he got ready to launch. "This isn't going to end well," Bowser mumbled through his radio.
1, GO!

Mario quickly released the clutch from the floor and slammed the gas. The radials squealed and created a fog of thick white tire smoke. The Mustang burst out of the gate giving Bowser a turn to choke on a particulate smoke screen. Regaining his composure, Bowser took off but the little 150cc engine was struggling to get much more than 50 mph. The Mach 1 on the other hand, with her secondaries wide open, was already pushing 100 mph as it approached the first elevated turn on the track. Mario shifted the weight of the car and counter steered hard creating a fantastic sight as the sun caught the glowing gold Mustang drifting through the right hand turn with her wheels cranked all the way to the left. The smoke trail started to dissipate as the car exited the turn at the perfect angle and hit the next straightaway on the way to the tunnel.

A short while later, on his second lap and not to be known for giving up, Bowser continued driving at full throttle and reached for his secret stash of golden mushrooms. Bowser gripped tight and let out an amused evil roar as the extra boost kicked in, his adrenaline rushed from the instant acceleration. "At this rate I'm SURE I'll be able to pass to that darn contraption of Mario's," an excited Bowser thought to himself. Continuing to gain speed, he now heard a noise increasing in volume as he drove on. "This is it! I must be catching up to him! I should be able to see him once I get into this turn." Bowser hopped the cart and toggled the steering wheel back and forth to get that nice orange colored drift smoke. As the bonus boost from the drift pushed Bowser through the curve, his eyes anxiously searched for the source of the noise. Upon sliding through the apex of the curve, he was taken aback as the rest of the turn came into view, but there was nothing there! Instantly, the noise grew excessively loud and Bowser went flush. "IMPOSSIBLE!" He slowly turned around to look back and his eyes grew large and frightened. For right in front of his face was the silver Mustang emblem on the Mach's honeycomb styled grille! Mario's eyes were staring him down from across the long hood, the dual air intakes like nostrils breathing down his neck, and that motor! An orchestration of eight pistons banging away in a perfect harmony that rang through his ears. Mario and his Mustang were already on the last circuit and about to lap Bowser too! In his panicked distraction, Bowser lost concentration on the road and was sent skidding uncontrollably onto the grassy infield. Stunned, he could do nothing but watch the fastback quickly make more and more space between them.

Back in the driver's seat of the fine thoroughbred, Mario had more than gotten his kicks through today's antics. He had seen some pretty amusing looks on Bowser's ugly face in the past while defeating him and rescuing the princess, but the one he just saw was in the top three for sure. Even though he had unrightfully lost the cup, Mario was satisfied with his unconventional comeback at the big cheat of a dinosaur. All that Bowser could do was watch the glinting sun play on the chrome bumper of the magnificent machine as it crossed the finish line. Shouting after the disappearing race car and its driver he bellowed out, "CURSE YOU MARIO. I'LL GET YOU FOR THIS. JUST WAIT UNTIL NEXT TIME!"