The final of Gran Turismo Asian Championship 2012 was held at the Nissan Global Headquarters Gallery in Yokohama, Japan. Drivers from Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand, who are champions of “GT Academy 2012” in their countries, gathered to compete to become the fastest racer in Asia. They participated in various GT activities during the two-day event. Here’s a report for those who weren’t there!

A Visit to the Polyphony Digital Inc. Studio

Lead by GT producer Kazunori Yamauchi, drivers visited the studio of Polyphony Digital Inc. on 10^th August as well as the art, motion-capture and programming department, learning how much time and effort the production team have put in over the years to create the “Gran Turismo” series they see.

Mr. Kazunori Yamauchi made a welcome speech

Kazunori Yamauchi demonstrated his driving skills. Something to learn for our drivers?

Various awards won by the Gran Turismo series line the studio

Kazunori Yamauchi introduces the origin of the awards

The studio is equipped with a huge library of books on automobile

The huge screen of Kazunori Yamauchi's private racing booth is close to what you see in a real car

The Final of All Asia Gran Turismo Championship 2012

On 11^th August, drivers arrived at Nissan Global Headquarters Gallery for their show time. After familiarizing competition rules, filming personal introduction video and testing equipment, lots were drawn to determine the division of competing group.

The competition was held in a grand venue

Drivers learning the rules of the competition

Do I look smart in my personal introduction video?

The preliminary races were held in Time Trial and only the top four drivers with fastest lap time enter the finals.  To ensure a fair competition, drivers were only informed of the course, car and tire settings right before it started.

Mr. Yamauchi wished drivers on getting satisfactory results

All drivers drew lots to determine their competing groups

The details of the race were only announced right before the competition began

All drivers have shown impeccable driving skills, making victory and defeat a mere difference of millisecond. Here are the drivers who got into the Final:

The Final was held in Point Challenge in which the fastest driver would be awarded 10 points, the second and the third 7 points and 6 points respectively, and so on. The driver with highest points after three rounds became the champion.

After some heated battles on the track, Yamada took over Rama in the third round with his stable and brilliant driving skills in a dramatic way and took the seat of champion with 27 points. A huge credit should be made for his perseverance.

Rama led the way all along in the third race

But he was taken over by Yamada only in the very last minute

Result of the Final:

Kazuteru YAMADA was crowned the champion of the competition

Producer Kazunori Yamauchi, Driver Lucas Ordóñez and the 16 greatest drivers of Asia took to the stage for a group photo

This rang the curtain down on Gran Turismo Asian Championship 2012. Thanks must be expressed to those who like and support the GT series. Hope to see you again in our future competitions!