If you want to emulate Igor Fraga in 2019 and stand on the top step of GT Sport’s Nations Cup podium, your chance starts this weekend.
The massive, 40-race season gets underway on Saturday March 23, with the “Stage 1” series. The best drivers, as scored by their best three rounds, will then get a chance to attend a live, World Tour event at the Nurburgring. On offer there is one automatic qualification spot to November’s World Final.
Stage 1 consists of ten races, held over the course of 34 days. Players get three chances at each race if they wish, although only their last attempt will count. The full schedule is as follows:
Round 1 — March 23
Track: Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, 11 laps
Car: Gr.2 – Garage Car
Tires: Racing Medium, Racing Hard
Fuel use: 6x
Tire use: 13x
Round 2 — March 27
Track: Dragon Trail – Gardens, 9 laps
Car: N300 – Garage Car
Tires: Sports Soft
Fuel use: 2x
Tire use: 7x
Round 3 — March 30
Track: Nurburgring – GP, 9 laps
Car: Gr.4 – Garage Car
Tires: Racing Medium, Racing Soft
Fuel use: 3x
Tire use: 11x
Round 4 — April 3
Track: Autopolis International Racing Course, 11 laps
Car: Super Formula Dallara SF19 Super Formula
Tires: Racing Medium, Racing Soft
Fuel use: 3x
Tire use: 20x
Round 5 — April 6
Track: Brands Hatch – Grand Prix, 15 laps
Car: Gr.3 – Garage Car
Tires: Racing Hard, Racing Medium
Fuel use: 4x
Tire use: 10x
Round 6 — April 10
Track: Dragon Trail – Seaside II, 13 laps
Car: Gr.1 – Garage Car
Tires: Racing Hard, Racing Medium
Fuel use: 2x
Tire use: 13x
Round 7 — April 13
Track: Fuji International Speedway, 9 laps
Car: N500 – Garage Car
Tires: Sports Hard, Sports Medium, Sports Soft
Fuel use: 2x
Tire use: 33x
Round 8 — April 20
Track: Autopolis International Racing Course, 11 laps
Car: Gr.2 – Garage Car
Tires: Racing Medium, Racing Soft
Fuel use: 3x
Tire use: 9x
Round 9 — April 24
Track: Kyoto Driving Park – Yamagiwa, 9 laps
Car: Toyota GR Supra RZ ’19 – Provided Car
Tires: Sports Soft
Fuel use: 2x
Tire use: 9x
Round 10 — April 27
Track: Suzuka Circuit, 9 laps
Car: Gr.3 – Garage Car
Tires: Racing Hard, Racing Medium
Fuel use: 3x
Tire use: 12x
For the European region, races take place at 1700, 1900, and 2100 UTC (beware that clocks across Europe may go forward after Round 2). In Oceania the races will be at 1800, 2000, and 2200 AEDT (UTC+11), while in Asia they’ll take place at 1900, 2100, and 2300 CST (UTC+8). For both North and South America the races start at 2200, 0000, and 0200 UTC (convert to your local time here).
Round 8 also features the Superstars race. This takes place during the middle time slot (with the regular race moved to ten minutes later), and offers increase points for the participants. However, you’ll need to be among the top players in your nation and region to qualify, as ranked by your best two points finishes up to then.
Eagle-eyed readers will spot a gap in the schedule, with no race planned for April 17. There’s also a race with no details yet, likely down to the fact it will feature yet-to-be-added content. This tallies with the information about a content update due on March 28 to bring the 2019 Super Formula cars to GT Sport. Other content may also become available too.
With some changes mooted for 2019, the Manufacturer Series won’t run alongside as before. For now, there’s an eight-race Exhibition Season for players to participate in with their chosen brands.
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