Kazunori Yamauchi, the legendary creator of the Gran Turismo race simulation series, was on hand to inspire PlayStation® and Nissan’s GT Academy 2010 ‘final two’ this weekend. Another milestone in the incredible competition was reached when Italian Luca Lorenzini and Frenchman Jordan Tresson secured the last of the 12 ‘signatures’ required to qualify for an International C race licence. The signatures have been gained in record time, with the PlayStation Nissan Team, run by UK-based RJN Motorsport, racing in seven meetings in the six weeks since Lorenzini and Tresson were announced as the winners of the five-day GT Academy event at Silverstone.

The overall winner of GT Academy 2010 will go on to race a full season for the PlayStation Nissan Team in the European GT4 Cup series driving a 420bhp Nissan 370Z GT4 car. With the pair’s racing performances so close during their intensive training period, RJN Motorsport owner Bob Neville will make his final decision on Wednesday during a test in the new car at Silverstone, the venue for the first race of the GT4 Cup on 1, 2 May.

The weekend’s racing went without incident. On Saturday the drivers joined forces to contest the Britcar Production Series race at Snetterton. Following a delay and re-start after a start-line crash, Lorenzini drove the first 45-minute stint before handing over to Tresson. The Frenchman put in a string of consistently quick laps and brought the car home 10th out of 17 overall and third in class.

At Mallory Park, the team raced in the Welsh Sports and Saloon Car championship that they had previously contested at Pembrey. Jordan Tresson qualified two places ahead of his teammate on the short lap and held his position to finish in sixth place and third in class. Luca Lorenzini was able to overhaul the two drivers in front of him and keep pace with the Frenchman, following him home in seventh (fourth in class).

“I was very pleased to have the opportunity to come and meet Luca and Jordan and I have been impressed with what they are doing,” explained Kazunori Yamauchi, president of Polyphony Digital and creator of the Gran Turismo series of racing simulation games, who travelled to Snetterton to meet up with the team. “GT Academy is very important to us. I think that you could be fantastic on a football game or a golf game, but the chances of you actually becoming a professional in those sports would be slim. With GT Academy we are proving that it is possible for a Gran Turismo racer to transfer their skills onto a real track and become a professional driver.”

“Another productive weekend and a great job by both drivers to gain all 12 signatures in such a quick time,” explained team boss Bob Neville at the end of another tough weekend. “We were always up against it with such a short window before the race at Silverstone, and so it was vital that both drivers finished every race safely. They have done that and also shown some impressive pace.

“It was great to host Kazunori Yamauchi at Snetterton on Saturday. He is a huge racing fan and a very good driver himself and I think he was impressed by Luca and Jordans’ achievements. It was a nice touch that they ended up on the podium for their class while he was there.

“I have a hard decision to make on Wednesday. However, I would say that the pace and consistency of Jordan this weekend has probably made him the front runner. But it is certainly still all to play for and it will be interesting to see how both of them get on in the full GT4 version of the 370Z. The power, brakes and slick tyres make it quite a different beast to what they have been driving up until this point.”

“This was an important weekend for us, especially as the Britcar race at Snetterton gave us the longest driving session we have had so far,” commented Jordan Tresson. “It was also important and very satisfying to qualify for our international licence. I am not really nervous about Wednesday. I have just been concentrating hard, learning and doing the best job I can throughout this six weeks and I will have to do the same on Wednesday and hope that it is enough.”

“This was another great weekend of racing and also great to meet Kazunori without whom we would not be here,” added Luca Lorenzini. “It felt good to be on the podium, but the competition is almost over now and so the pressure is definitely on. I hope I can do a good job on Wednesday.”