Kazunori Yamauchi, the visionary behind the Gran Turismo game franchise, took a first in class victory at the Nürburgring 24 Hour race in Germany, which finished on Sunday.
Driving a race prepared 2011 Nissan GT-R, Kazunori-san and his team-mates completed 134 laps in 24 hours, 2 minutes and 26.9 seconds. The race is run on the extended 24-hour circuit that incorporates the Gran Prix circuit in addiditon to the fabled Nordschleife, and the GT-R set a fastest lap time of 9:17.707.
The GT-R team, Team Schulze, was competing against vehicles as diverse as the 2011 Lexus LF-A, Audi RS4, 2011 Nissan 370Z, and an Aston Martin V12 Zagato driven by Aston Martin boss Dr Ulrich Bez.
Kazunori-san has always maintained that he created the Gran Turismo game from his passion for cars and racing, and his performance in the Nurburgring 24 Hours is testament to this passion. Last year, he ran the race in a Lexus IS-F.
You might not manage to get to Germany to see the race yourself, but with the 24-hour course and the 2011 Nissan GT-R featuring in Gran Turismo 5, you can always try replicating the performance...
