Gran Turismo World Series

Gran Turismo World Series
Current season, competition or edition:
Current sports event 2024 GTWS season
Formerly
  • FIA-Certified Gran Turismo Championships (2018-2021)
Game
Founded2017; 7 years ago (2017)
FounderKazunori Yamauchi
First season2018
Owner(s)Polyphony Digital
CommissionerKazunori Yamauchi
CountriesWorldwide
Most recent
champion(s)		Toyota GR GT Cup
Spain Pol Urra
Nations Cup
Spain Pol Urra
Spain Coque López
Spain José Serrano
Manufacturers Cup
Argentina Mateo Estevez
France Mehdi Hafidi
Japan Ryota Kokubun
Most titlesBrazil Igor Fraga (4)
(1 Toyota GR GT Cup, 1 Nations, 2 Manufacturers)
Japan Takuma Miyazono (4)
(1 Toyota GR GT Cup, 1 Nations, 2 Manufacturers)
Sponsor(s)BBS, Brembo, Fanatec, Genesis, Mazda, Michelin, Sony Alpha, Toyota
Official websiteOfficial website
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The Gran Turismo World Series (also referred to as the GTWS) is a series of professional Gran Turismo world championship esports tournaments, managed directly by Japanese game development studio Polyphony Digital.[1] The championship contains two series that are held concurrently throughout the year: the Nations Cup (entrants from their respective countries will represent them) and the Manufacturers Cup (entrants will race for and represent their chosen manufacturer). The series uses Polyphony Digital's latest racing video game Gran Turismo 7.

Through 2018 to 2021, the Gran Turismo World Series was previously sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. Polyphony Digital's partnership with the FIA is currently on hiatus.[2]

The Nations Cup and Manufacturers Cup trophies are laser-scanned reproductions of Italian sculptor Umberto Boccioni's 1913 bronze futurist sculpture Unique Forms of Continuity in Space, chosen by Polyphony Digital as it represents the “surprise and fascination of machines first discovered by mankind”, and also shares values held by the Gran Turismo series.[3] Players are given a plaque for their participation in the series during live events and by the end of the year. Players who finish in the Top 3 in any series receive a gold plaque and a trophy. Players were also formerly given a TAG Heuer watch, but no longer became a prize after their partnership with Polyphony ended in 2020; a set of Sony Alpha photography equipment were given out that year, followed by a set of BBS wheels for 2021.

Toyota,[4] Genesis,[5] Mazda,[6] Michelin,[7] Brembo,[8] Sony Alpha, BBS,[9] and Fanatec[10] serve as the series partners of the World Series. The series is provided with clothing by Puma and peripherals by Fanatec. All virtual races in the tournament take place in specified locations all around the globe. In addition to the live studio audiences at the specified locations, the tournaments are streamed live in YouTube through several languages. The series has since made an impact in real-world motorsport, serving as a basis for virtual players in terms of possibly starting a career in esports before jumping into real-world motorsport.[11]

  1. ^ "FIA-Certified Gran Turismo Online Championships now live". Federation Internationale de l'Automobile. 2018-06-21. Retrieved 2019-06-22.
  2. ^ "FIA clarifies Gran Turismo relationship and future". www.motorsport.com. Retrieved 2022-07-23.
  3. ^ "'Gran Turismo Sport' Release Celebrated with a Launch Event in Modena, Italy - Gran Turismo® Sport". gran-turismo.com. Retrieved 2022-10-11.
  4. ^ "Introducing the "GR Supra GT Cup" from TOYOTA GAZOO Racing, now an Official Partner of the FIA GT Championships! - Gran Turismo® Sport". gran-turismo.com. Retrieved 2022-11-30.
  5. ^ "Gran Turismo World Series gets underway with Gran Turismo 7". PlayStation.Blog. 2022-05-25. Retrieved 2022-05-25.
  6. ^ "Mazda GT3 concept based on RX-Vision show car has Gran Turismo debut". Autoblog. Retrieved 2022-11-30.
  7. ^ "PlayStation and Michelin pair to make Gran Turismo more gripping". RACER. 2019-08-23. Retrieved 2019-08-23.
  8. ^ "Brembo to become official partner in braking systems of Gran Turismo™ 7 for Playstation® consoles". Brembo – Official WebSite. Retrieved 2022-11-30.
  9. ^ "BBS Japan Named Official Partner of the FIA Certified Gran Turismo Championships - gran-turismo.com". www.gran-turismo.com. Retrieved 2021-12-06.
  10. ^ Harrison-Lord, Thomas (2023-05-18). "Gran Turismo World Series competition will now use Fanatec equipment". Traxion.GG. Retrieved 2023-05-18.
  11. ^ "Gran Turismo Sport - exploring its impact on real-world racing with Kazunori Yamauchi". evo. Retrieved 2023-08-14.