The Gran Turismo racing simulator franchise turns 21 this year — having morphed from a simple video game into the basis for one of the most cut-throat arenas in competitive international eSports.
This weekend marks arguably the biggest all-in eSports event for the series yet, as GT Sport regional finals unfold across the world with support from international motorsport body, FIA. The best from each event will progress to a ‘world final’ at a yet to be disclosed location.
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Four New Zealanders qualified for the Asia-Pacific finals in Tokyo: Matt Smith (Christchurch), Hayden Hunter (Auckland), Simon Bishop (Dunedin) and Matthew Brown (Invercargill). Each fought for eligibility via three months of FIA-sanctioned online races.
“Last time I was out of the country was 15 years ago, and that was to Australia,” laughed Brown, speaking to Driven.
"As a teenager I got a Playstation and I played it on and off. I guess I got more competitive with Gran Turismo 4,when I got my first wheel. It grew from there, and with online it became easier to find competition.
"I would never have thought of it. I’ve never played a game to do something like this, I’ve always just played them for fun. I guess I’m competitive — there’s always someone out there that’s faster than me and I’m always trying to get faster or get better, and it’s led me to here. It’s kind of crazy."
Professionalism in eSports has steadily built across a number of codes; underlined by the creation of a number of international teams. Brown and Bishop have just signed to drive for a UK-based squad called ESPORTS+CARS, founded in 2016 by former head of Nissan Motorsport, Darren Cox.
They join Smith, who has driven for the team for 12 months in a partnership punctuated by an appearance at the World Rally Championship eSports Grand Final at Hyundai Motorsport’s German headquarters.
"It was after the Gran Turismo New Zealand championship. I drove straight to the airport and got on the plane to Germany to compete in the WRC finals over there," said Smith.
“That was epic. [Racing] against the seven best drivers in the world was pretty crazy."
Image / Matthew Brown
Smith also competes in 'real-world' racing as a regular in the popular 2kCup Series with his Toyota MR2. Racing online helps him stay sharp for racing on track, but there are distinctions.
“In terms of the technique, the braking points you want to use, that’s all very similar. But the biggest difference is that some of the inputs are different, particularly for braking," he adds.
"In Gran Turismo there’s ABS and that takes care of everything and you’re slamming on the brakes. But once you’re in the real car you have to manage the braking feel a lot more otherwise you’re locking up every single time."
Thirty drivers will compete in Tokyo. Their first races see them split into three groups of 10 — one for Japanese drivers, one for Australian drivers, and one for the balance from New Zealand, Hong Kong and Taiwan.
The top two finishers from each split will qualify for the world finals, with the rest set to face off in a series of repechage races that unfold on Sunday.
The Kiwis' all important opening race will take place at the fictional Dragon Tail Gardens circuit, while other splits will have different settings (the Australians, for instance, will race at Mount Panorama).
Simon Bishop starts second for this first race, having earned the slot by being No. 1 in New Zealand.
“The goal was to make it, and [now] it turns out that I’m starting at the front. If I finish where I start then I’ll go to the world finals, which changes the focus of the event,” he said.
Image / Matthew Brown
The trip to Japan itself is not unlike the race weekend that a professional athlete might go through. From the moment that each driver lands in Tokyo, they are subject to public relations — video and photography appearances, scheduled day plans, and minders all included.
"People tell me I'm going over for a nice holiday. Well, not really. As soon as all of us land we've got Sony PR, a lot of photography and filming. Then we go to the hotel and the next day we get up and do more photography and filming," added Bishop.
"You'll have no chance to go out and do anything. I think at the end we've got some kind of activity plan, so hopefully we'll see the city. But you're not really going for a sightseeing tour, you're going there to try and compete. I think everybody will have that mindset."
With approximately 250 hours under his belt and a front-row starting position, Bishop lines up as the front-running New Zealander in the competition. His main vice, however, is having to adapt from using a controller to a full steering-wheel set-up.
Image / Matthew Brown
"On the controller everything you do is with your hands. You drive the cars a certain way and you're used to how things respond. But then all of a sudden you have to go to the wheel which is completely on feet. The little intricate details of how you make cars go fast on the wheel are completely different to on the controller.
"It's just hard to balance the throttle and balance the braking. To trail brake into the corners is how you do the fast laps. On the controller it's really easy — you just hold the trigger a little less — but on the pedals you have to balance your foot at a certain point and the weight of the pedals is very heavy so it's hard to get a certain balance of pressure. But having said that I've learned quite quickly.
“To have got this far you’ll have had to have raced for three months, every week. People who weren’t serious about it wouldn’t be racing now.”