GT Academy Day 6: Final day of racing brings high tensions, one winner

SILVERSTONE, UK – With the final day of the 2015 Nissan PlayStation® GT Academy International Race Camp upon us, tensions were understandably high. Only 10 contestants from an original 30 remained in the competitions, two from each of the countries.

Each competitor received 20 laps of tuition from the GT Academy instructors in the Nissan 370Z NISMO race cars on the Silverstone National Circuit. The contestants were then given the opportunity to do five flying laps with their mentor in the passenger seat. The mentors and judges were looking for the academy drivers to be able to demonstrate development and progression in their driving ability and the potential to go on to become professional racing drivers.

The mentors, assisted by the instructors, huddled together on the pit wall to make the most difficult decision of the competition so far. The time had come to select the strongest candidate to represent his country in the final race while eliminating the other from the competition. Elation for the five finalists was contrasted with disappointment, and in some cases tears, for the contestants that had so nearly made it to the end.

After one last chance to take to the National Circuit for 10 minutes to hone all the skills they'd learned over the last six days, the final of the 2015 Nissan PlayStation® GT Academy International Race Camp came down to one race. As a result of yesterday's stock car challenge, Matthew Simmons of Australia lined up on the front row of the grid, followed by Ryan Lynch (USA), Hüseyin Dağlı (Turkey) in third, Ali Samy (North Africa) fourth, and Juan Carlos Carmona (Mexico) starting at the back.

2015 GT Academy USA Finalist Ryan Lynch

It was eight of the most enthralling laps that any motorsport enthusiast could have wished for. Matthew, the 26-year-old from Brisbane, Australia got a fantastic start off the line but was edged out coming in to the first corner by Ryan and Hüseyin. Ryan missed a breaking point early on in the race, running very wide and dropping back to fifth, which left Hüseyin and Matthew to battle it out. After exchanging blows three or four times in as many laps, Matthew seemed to have cemented first spot with back to back fastest lap times before his car seemingly slowed due to a mechanical fault allowing both Hüseyin and Juan Carlos to pass him.

The checkered flag was followed by nearly an hour of deliberation between the judges as the mentors and contestants waited patiently. Rob Barff, the head judge, eventually announced the final decision on the podium surrounded by the mentors and the final five competitors to huge cheers from the Australian team.

The 2015 Nissan PlayStation® GT Academy International Race Camp Winner is Matthew Simmons. 

Matthew Simmons, Australia competitor and 2015 GT Academy International Winner: "I genuinely can't believe it. I'm on top of the world. Unfortunately a mechanical problem took the race out of my hands, but that's motorsport and you can't hide that, and I think in the early stages of the race I really showed the potential of what I can do. The wait on the podium was killing me, but when Rob said my name I had to do a double take. I can't believe he said it, and I'm now a racing driver! The GT Academy program is amazing. You can really tell the driver development program trains you to become an athlete, and they teach you all the aspects, so by the time you reach that pinnacle and you're at Dubai 24 Hours, you're ready to take on the world."

Rick Kelly, Australia team judge: "Matt has done all this by himself. He's been the most consistent and the fastest from the word go. Him winning today is due to his confidence and how much he deserved it. When he came in to the pit lane he was extremely devastated. You could see he thought his dreams had slipped away, but I'm just thankful that everyone saw Matt was the best guy for the job. The biggest thing is 10 minutes ago this guy was a courier and a gamer as a hobby; now he's a professional race car driver. He can go back to Australia, hand his notice in and his new life begins. It's an amazing opportunity."

Rob Barff, 2015 Nissan PlayStation GT Academy International Head Judge: "Matthew has been strong and consistent all week. He's shown he's a great team player, and we welcome him to the GT Academy family. We've been very honest: His car had a problem, and in motor racing that happens. It's something we could have easily shied away from, but we haven't and it's the right and fair result. The next time I see him it'll be around the paddocks of the UK, and then the Dubai 24 Hours."

THE COMPETITORS

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