GT Academy (also known as Nissan PlayStation GT Academy and NISMO PlayStation GT Academy as part of the Nissan partnership) was a television programme produced by Grand Central Entertainment and funded by Nissan and Sony Interactive Entertainment from 2008 to 2016. GT Academy provided skilled Gran Turismo players an opportunity to earn a real-life professional racing career with Nissan.
History
GT Academy was conceived by Darren Cox, a former Nissan Europe executive, in 2006 to help Sony PlayStation racing gamers become professional racing drivers. A small event was held in 2006 in a partnership with Sony, where participants competed in the Gran Turismo game and on an actual track for a Nissan 350Z prize. Cox saw the speed in real cars of the gamers and his idea of 'Gamer to Racer' was born.
In 2008, Darren Cox's concept materialized with the founding of Nissan GT Academy, a joint venture between Sony and Nissan, which took its name from the well-known Gran Turismo video game series. In the same year, inaugural GT Academy competition took place, with Spain's Lucas Ordóñez claiming victory. Following a commendable performance at the 2009 Dubai 24 Hours, Nissan enlisted Ordóñez for its works racing team. Cox is portrayed by Orlando Bloom in a film named after the game Gran Turismo, released in 2023.
From 2010 to 2016, the Nissan PlayStation GT Academy program saw twenty-one additional winners, many of whom had success on track including Championship wins, Podiums and international races, such as the 2015 Bathurst 12 Hours in Australia.
GT Academy continued in 2010, expanding to 17 countries, including New Zealand and Australia. A GT Academy-oriented DLC for Gran Turismo 5 was released to the public, and was the prerequisite required for participants to qualify for the programme. The DLC was downloaded by participants more than 1.3 million times during its active period. In 2011, the competition expanded to the United States, where Bryan Heitkotter became the first GT Academy Winner outside of Europe. The European competition in 2011 began at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in Le Mans, France, as inaugural GT Academy Winner Lucas Ordoñez made his Le Mans race debut. 2012 saw the beginning of live events, offering a way into GT Academy for those without access to a PlayStation 3 console or Gran Turismo game.
In 2013, GT Academy included competitions in Europe, the United States, Germany, Russia, the Middle East and South Africa, each entering the competition for the first time on Gran Turismo 6. In 2014, a new International competition was introduced, broadening GT Academy again to Australia and the Middle East, and for the first time to India, Mexico, and Thailand. The sixth season in 2014 grew to include separate competitions for Europe (France, Italy, United Kingdom, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Russia, Sweden, Poland, and Czech Republic), Germany, North America (United States and Canada) and an International group (Australia, India, Middle East, Mexico and Thailand). In the 2015 Dubai 24 Hour race, four new GT Academy winners finished second in the GT3 Pro-Am class and fifth overall out of 95 cars, just months after winning their respective GT Academy competitions. The round in Malaysia was planned in 2015, together with new countries such as Japan and Indonesia.
Format
Developed for television by Executive Producers Andrew Hill and Rabin Mukerjea, the contest comprised different phases. Players began with virtual racing on Polyphony Digital's Gran Turismo games and progressed to National Finals before the winners of each region competed for real in actual Nissan cars at Race Camp. This experience involved week-long testing and challenges that also involved elimination. Throughout all seasons of the programme, 'Race Camp' was based at Silverstone Circuit in the United Kingdom where the winner was crowned to whoever demonstrated the highest potential to transition from Gran Turismo gamer to a real racer. Nissan's Driver Development Program was included to try and assist GT Academy winners to develop the skills needed to compete against those with years of car racing experience. Over six seasons, more than five million people had entered GT Academy via PlayStation 3. GT Academy winners who qualified to compete in the international race or series were also considered for a potential future racing career with Nissan as a Nismo Athlete.