More than eight months after first being revealed at the 2018 LA Auto Show, the most hardcore model of Merc’s refreshed AMG GT lineup has been launched in the United States.

While deliveries of the first units will not commence before the end of the year, the automaker announced that the limited edition GT R Pro, which will be made in just 750 units worldwide, will cost $199,650 on this side of the pond, excluding a $995 destination and delivery charge, which brings the grand total to a little over $200k.

For the money, customers get no extra power over the “regular” GT R – which means they’ll have to make do with “only” 577 HP and 516 lb-ft of torque. This is far from just a case of sticking a new badge, adding a pair of stickers and fancy colors and some extra kit, though, as Affalterbach’s engineers have worked hard, drawing inspiration from the GT3 and GT4 racers, to ensure it really is a more driver-focused version of the (already superb) AMG GT.

The first thing that catches the eye are the visual changes, among which we count the more aggressive aero pack with big front air intakes and canards, a carbon splitter, front wing air extractors, larger rear diffuser and a fixed wing, along with lightweight forged alloy rims. These are complemented by a different carbon roof with a lower center section, a carbon underbody, sportier coilover suspension with adjustable rebound and and compression and carbon ceramic brakes as standard.

All in all, these translate to the GT R Pro being nearly six seconds faster around Nurburgring than the normal version despite its twin-turbo, 4.0-liter V8 not pumping out any extra power, and demonstrate what a difference a meticulously tuned chassis makes around an extremely demanding circuit like the Nordschleife.

Of course, there are some changes inside as well, such as a sportier wheel and seats, along with a host of updates shared with the rest of the revamped AMG GT range, such as a 12.3-inch fully digital instrument cluster, 10.25-inch infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, touch display buttons at the center console and a new touchpad for the multimedia interface.