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.
Entrance Requirements According to the GT Academy site on the Gran Turismo website, GT Academy required entrants to be over the age of 18 and hold a valid driver's license, and never have a racing license equivalent to
Motor Sport Association UK A class license or higher. Any contestant who made it to Race Camp in any of the previous GT Academy competitions was generally restricted to the Online Qualification stage of the GT Academy.
Phase One: Qualification Players qualified for GT Academy through Gran Turismo 6 on PlayStation 3. Gamers in the participating territories signed in with their PSN (PlayStation Network) ID and entered the competition via a free automatic update on the game. They then had to compete against each other to set the fastest lap time possible in four consecutive rounds, each with a different track and Nissan vehicle, before the final round determined whether or not the player qualified for the next phase of GT Academy. Nissan and PlayStation hosted Live Events for the qualifying rounds in the participating territories. These events allowed those who did not have a PlayStation 3 or copy of Gran Turismo 6 to enter the competition on gaming pods set up at public venues or events, such as motor shows and gaming conventions. The fastest gamers at the Live Events were granted a spot at the National Finals.
Phase Two: National Finals National Finals identified which gamers had real-life racing potential and determined the top selection of competitors who would progress to the next phase of GT Academy. In addition to onsite Gran Turismo 6 time trials, competitors were also tested on real driving in Nissan vehicles. Additionally, players underwent a personality test, and regular assessments of physical fitness, vision and general health.
Phase Three: Race Camp Winners from the National Finals received a place at Race Camp, a week-long selection process that determined the GT Academy Winner. Headquartered at Stowe Circuit in the premises of Silverstone Circuit, UK, Race Camp assessed competitors both on and off the real-world track. Competitors were split into regional groups where they competed against each other and also against other territories. They were allocated a judge - each with a professional background in auto racing – responsible for mentoring and eliminating all but one of their group based on various eliminatory challenges. A head judge also oversaw the eliminations and had the ultimate responsibility of naming the GT Academy Winner. On the last day, the remaining competitors - one from each group – competed in a final race against each other, where the results of the race, along with their development over Race Camp, were taken into account, so as for the judges to determine the winner. All activities took place within Silverstone Circuit and a number of other neighbouring venues to accommodate numerous types of challenges. On the track, these included pit stop challenge, gymkhana, dogfight, stock car racing, traffic challenge, and more, with competitors driving in buggies, single seaters, and Caterham cars, as well as actual Nissan cars such as the 370Z, Juke, GT-R, Leaf, and Pulsar. Off-track challenges typically involved an assault course, triathlon, laser challenge, written tests, interviews and more.
Phase Four: Driver Development Program GT Academy Winners were invited to take part in Nissan's Driver Development Programme. Headquartered at Silverstone Circuit, UK, the Driver Development Program consisted of two-to-four months of training and racing at club and national level with the GT Academy Nissan RJN Motorsport Team in order for drivers to qualify for an International Racing License, a process that normally takes three years. This was a requirement to compete at an international endurance race – the final prize for the majority of the GT Academy Winners – which for most had been the Dubai 24 Hours.
rFactor 2 is also used for the training. RJN Motorsport was the racing team for GT Academy Winners for the Driver Development Programme for the entirety of GT Academy, starting from when inaugural winner
Lucas Ordoñez upgraded his National B racing license to an International C racing licence after six weekends of racing. In addition to building fitness, racing experience and theory, the Driver Development Programme also included training in the NISMO Lab, where technological equipment included Nissan's In-Body machine, which analysed body composition; a brainwave monitor, which trained the mind to simultaneously focus and relax; a BATAK console to improve peripheral vision and reaction times; a racing simulator which allowed simulated racing practice on any track in the world; a biometric harness and the JukeRide which measured biometric and telemetry data respectively. == Competitions ==