HP in a vacuum, as if it's the only thing that matters, will make you a loser in many situations.
Slap an 18000-20000 rpm f1 engine in a 3500# car with a street converter and 3.55's, 28" tires... Yeah it makes 800hp, it won't accelerate for crap until way up in the band. Meanwhile the lower HP, more torque, 6K rpm grunter is going to run away from it out to the 1/8 mile point. Now put 8:1 rear gears, 8 speed trans and 14K rpm converter, suddenly the F1 engine will work better... but only HP matters. :)
What do the gear and trans ratios do? They multiply something, what is it? LOL
HP is a derivative of observed torque. Without TQ, you don't have HP.
Any build decisions should be based upon the desired goals.
