Joward’s forward: PH gamer wins Asian Nissan GT PlayStation Academy

A VICTORIOUS Policarpio gets ready for the champagne spray on the podium and later joined his teammates for an obligatory photo-op with the pit ladies.

SILVERSTONE, Northampton, England—For some people, yellow denotes lack of bravery, but for Jose Gerard “Joward” Policarpio, it was his lucky color.

Policarpio, 25, one of the six Philippine national finalists sent by Nissan Philippines, Inc. (NPI) to the fabled Silverstone race circuit in Northampton, England for the 2015 Asian Race Camp of the Nissan PlayStation GT Academy competition, drove a yellow Nissan 370Z to victory in the final race on Aug. 20 and the night before that, a yellow Nissan Micra in the stock car challenge.

In both races, Policarpio bested the drivers chosen by Japan, Thailand, Indonesia and India to represent their respective countries on the track.

ABOUT GT ACADEMY

GT Academy was created in Europe in 2008 by Nissan, Sony Computer Entertainment and Polyphony Digital, Inc. as a contest to discover and develop drivers through the video game Gran Turismo by testing their skills in both online gaming and live events.  Players who pass the preliminary qualifying rounds have a chance to receive driver training and a license enabling them to participate in international races.  In this way, GT Academy takes gamers from the virtual world to real racing circuits, supporting their new career as professional race car drivers.

After its launch in Europe, GT Academy grew in popularity all over the world so much so that competition now takes place everywhere from Germany to the United States and Russia to the Middle East. GT Academy Asia was launched in January 2015 to join GT Academy Europe and GT Academy International as an international region.  The Asian component of GT Academy was opened to gamers from Thailand, India, Japan, Indonesia and the Philippines.

In fact, the road to Race Camp in Silverstone was a long, arduous one for the six Philippine finalists. Nissan held live events in various locations nationwide in the Philippines during which thousands of aspirants competed in time trials behind the wheel of GT pods. The 20 fastest and qualified gamers who excelled in online and live preliminary qualifying rounds advanced to the national finals in July where the top six Filipino players were selected for the Asian Race Camp at Silverstone this August.

Those who reached the national finals underwent a mandatory health screening for physical fitness and had to be in good general health in accordance with the Automobile Association Philippines medical requirements.

RACE CAMP IN SILVERSTONE

Jumping from the virtual cars of PlayStation to actual Nissan sports cars, the competitors were tested on their strength, stamina, mental agility and driving skills at Race Camp. The judges assessed and graded the performance of each driver in every event. The scores were added up to determine the starting grid positions of the final five Asian competitors in the final race, together with other qualifying points.

Along with the other PH finalists Joel Agoho, Daryl Braby, Luis Cachero, Rafael Lesaguis and Terence Lallave, Policarpio had to hurdle tough tests such as a gymkhana using the Nissan 370Z and a buggy race plus time trials in the Formula 3000, Palmer JPLM car and the Caterham Super 7, to qualify for the semi-final race, the stock car challenge at Race Camp.

By the time the Philippine print media including this writer arrived at Silverstone on Aug. 18, drivers Agoho, Braby and Lallave had been eliminated, leaving Cachero, Lesaguis and Policarpio to duke it out.  But the consensus was that the Philippine drivers formed the strongest team, with Thailand and Indonesia snapping at their heels.

All the drivers were accommodated in a place other than Whittlebury Hall (where the media stayed) and had to sleep outdoors one night in a tent.  Although August is still considered summer in Northampton, which is about two hours’ drive north of London, the temperature drops substantially after sunset and the cold wind gets stronger—a chilly weathering test for visitors from the tropics sleeping outdoors.

The Philippine group was mentored by Fil-Swiss GP2 driver Marlon Stockinger and Mexican Ricardo Sanchez, 24, the 2014 GT PlayStation Academy International Champion who is now the Nissan NISMO driver in the GT3 Blancpain endurance series. But Stockinger had to leave Silverstone on Aug. 19 to compete in a race in Germany, leaving Sanchez to coach the Filipinos through the final intensive phases of the Asian Race Camp.

THE FINALIST

When all but Lesaguis and Policarpio had been eliminated, Sanchez phoned Stockinger to agree on who would drive for the Philippines in the final race.  Unfortunately for Lesaguis, his Micra collided with the car of the Indian driver along the wall in the stock car challenge and had to drop out, leaving Policarpio as the best qualified to carry the Philippine flag in the final race.

At this point, their coach Ricardo Sanchez rallied the Filipino drivers and the Philippine print and broadcast media present to support Policarpio loud and clear in his effort to bag the trophy.  It was the first time that the Philippines was competing in the Nissan PlayStation GT Academy challenge and it would be absolutely stupendous if our driver won the Asian championship in the country’s first attempt.

And Joward Policarpio did it: gained international recognition for the high level of motorsport skills in the Philippines by winning the first Asian GT Academy championship.  In the stock car challenge, Joward was consistently ahead of his rivals and he never gave up the lead.

THE FINAL RACE

In the final 10-lap race on Silverstone’s Stowe Circuit featuring Nissan 370Z powered by a 3.7-liter DOHC 24-valve V6 engine delivering 332 max horsepower through a six-speed manual transmission, Joward was assigned to third position on the starting grid behind the Indonesian Andika Rama Maulana who was in pole position and the Japanese finalist in second.

Yet in the very first lap, Joward overtook the Japanese when he noticed an opening, to quickly gain second position. In the fourth or fifth lap (“I’m not sure which lap, I lost count,” says Joward), Maulana overshot the corner, allowing Joward to pass him and gain the lead.  The Philippine print media and Joward’s fellow drivers, who were watching the race on the rooftop of a building beside a portion of the Stowe Circuit, cheered lustily when they caught sight of Joward’s yellow 370Z leading the pack.

Joward never lost the lead, although Maulana came close to overtaking him in the last lap.  Joward said afterwards that his car’s engine was sputtering in the last three laps, especially in a particular corner, but on the rest of the track it performed well.  “There was a fuel surge in the last lap,” Joward told us, but he was able to control it and steer ahead of the Indonesian competitor past the checkered flag.

ASIAN CHAMPION

After the final race, everyone had to wait for the judges’ decision as to who was the 2015 Asian Nissan GT PlayStation Academy champion. Winning the final race was no guarantee that Joward would be declared champion, since the performance of all five finalists in all the previous time trials and competitions had to be assessed and compared.

Finally, Joward Policarpio appeared on the national podium of Silverstone, holding the GT Academy award and waving to the crowd. After the television interviews on the ground, he posed beside a grinning, jubilant coach Ricardo Sanchez holding a small Philippine flag. He still looked somewhat dazed, as if he couldn’t believe that he had won the championship.

At dinner afterwards in Whittlebury Hall’s Grand Prix terrace. Joward remained unassuming, calm and soft-spoken. He was the champion of the Nissan GT PlayStation Academy 2015 Asian Race Camp, and it was not in his nature to brag about it.

THE AWARD

What award will Joward Policarpio receive for winning? From October up to December, he will join other GT Academy winners in intensive training under the wing of professional coaches and racers at the Silverstone Racing Circuit in England to qualify for a professional International C license.  In January 2016, he will compete in the International 24 Hours of Dubai endurance race, supported by Nissan Global.

The professional license will enable Joward to qualify for international automobile races as well as support to compete in races as a member of the Nissan racing team, just like Nissan NISMO driver Ricardo Sanchez of Mexico, who coached the Philippine finalists together with Marlon Stockinger.  This is the dream coming true for Joward, who says: “I want to race for Nissan in endurance races driving a Nissan GT-R.” (The GT-R packs 600 brake horsepower.)

Thanks to Nissan Philippines, Inc., Philippine motorsport fans will now be able to follow Joward Policarpio’s progress in the Nissan PlayStation GT Academy Driver Development Program in Silverstone later this year and his performance in the upcoming 24 Hours of Dubai race.