Power Wheels Magazine A Notch Above
Nissan Philippines Inc. (NPI) once again brings Innovation that Excites to the local motorsports scene as they formally launch the second season of the now, highly anticipated, Nissan GT Academy Philippines.
Held last June 30 2016 at the SM Mall of Asia Atrium, The Nissan GT Academy is NPI’s way of encouraging Filipino gamers to believe in their dreams through this virtual-to-reality racing competition. “We look forward to giving more opportunities for Filipino garners to realize their dream of becoming professional racecar drivers” said NPI President and Managing Director Ramesh Narasimhan.
At the event was Lucas Ordonez, the inaugural winner of the 2008 Nissan Playstation GT Academy in Europe. Since winning in 2008 0rdonez has emerged as one of the leading contenders in racing competitions around the globe, now he is an inspiration for all garners and aspiring racers looking to get their big break in the latest season of Nissan GT Academy.
NPI also revealed that the new Sony Playstation 4 Exclusive Gran Turismo Sport would be playable for the first time ever during live recruitment events of the 2016 Nissan GT Academy. In partnership with Polyphony Digital, Nissan introduced the upgraded racing video game to the Philippines and other participating countries ahead of its official release to the rest of the world in November.
”Last year the Philippine team competed against other racers in other countries and came out on top, continuing the competition’s success we open season 2 with Lucas Ordonez in hopes of motivating the best Filipino talents to enter the competition and make the country the breeding ground for outstanding racing drivers” added Narasimhan.
Last season over 13 000 hopefuls showcased their talents at the live events carried out nationwide. Out of all the contenders, six Filipino representatives were chosen to represent the Philippines at Race Camp Week at the Silverstone Circuit, UK. One of them won the title besting other competitors from India, Indonesia Japan, and Thailand
Joward Policarpio was crowned the grand winner and became the first Filipino Nissan GT Academy Asia champion. This season. NPI will be holding nationwide series of Live Events for its recruitment drive starting July until August, with the National Finals slated for September. The Top 6 contenders will then fly to the Silverstone circuit in the United Kingdom for the Race Camp to compete against representatives from Australia, Indonesia Mexico. North Africa, and Thailand to determine the Nissan GT Academy 2016 champion.
The Tentative schedule of the Live Events are as follows:
- July 9-10, 2016 – SM City North EDSA, The Block, 10AM-10PM
- July 14-20, 2016 – SM Southmall, 10AM-10PM
- July 17-23, 2016 – SM Bacolod, 10AM-10PM
- July 19-25, 2016 – SM Ecoland Davao, 10AM-10PM
- July 28-August 3, 2016 – SM Sta. Rosa, 10AM-10PM
For more details on the Nissan GT Academy, visit www.nissan.ph/gtacademy and the Nissan Philippines facebook page at #/nissanphilippineslnc for additional information on the Live Events.
Photos by NPI and Neil Pagulayan