Ordonez face tough Spa 24-hr race in PS and Nissan GT Academy program

 

Ordoñez was the winner of the first GT Academy competition in 2008. His prize was to compete in the Dubai International 24 Hour Race alongside Johnny Herbert. A full-season drive in the 2009 European GT4 Cup followed. Racing alongside Alex Buncombe, the pair finished a close second in the drivers’ championship, and helped secure the team’s title.

 

Having unearthed a new driving talent through the GT Academy, Nissan alongside its partners Polyphony Digital (maker of the award-winning Gran Turismo series) and PlayStation have devised a program this year to help nurture Ordoñez’ talent further as he takes the next step towards a full-time career in motorsport.
 

After his successful debut season, the decision was taken to enter Lucas for a further full season, this time racing solo, in the 2010 European GT4 Cup. With experience of long race distances likely to benefit his future career path,

 

The Spa 24 Hours features GT2, GT3 and GT4 cars. It will be in the GT4 class that Nissan and Ordoñez will measure themselves against old foes from the GT4 Cup – Porsche and Aston Martin. This class for production-based cars is a stern test of the reliability of the mainly standard components over a grueling 24 hour period on one of the world’s toughest circuits.

 

GT Academy champion Lucas Ordoñez (above) said: “Three years ago I was at home racing on the PlayStation. I’m now a racing driver thanks to PlayStation and Nissan. Alongside Dubai, this is the most important race of my life. The Spa 24 Hours has such a great history, so to be competing here for the Nissan PlayStation team will be amazing. We have a fantastic line-up of drivers that will include Alex, Chris, Rob and me, so I think we will be fast every time we are in the car and we have a really good chance to do well.”