2021 FIA Gran Turismo Championship Online Stage 2 Schedule Revealed

No sooner has the first online stage of the 2021 FIA Gran Turismo Championship ended than the second and final stage begins.

There’s just over a week until the second batch of ten races gets underway, and these will determine most of the participants at this year’s World Final.

The new format for 2021 will see the 16 best drivers from the online competition join the top 16 drivers from August’s World Series Showdown in the Nations Cup final in December. In the Manufacturer Series, the Online Stage 2 will decide which 12 brands will contest the World Final, and which three drivers will represent each.

It’s a pretty significant period for the 2021 championships then, and PD has revealed the calendar for both series today:

Nations Cup

• Round 1 – July 10 – Toyota GR86/Autopolis International – 10 laps
• Round 2 – July 17 – Gr.4/Autodrome Lago Maggiore East II – 23 laps
• Round 3 – July 31 – Gr.3/Dragon Trail Seaside II – 20 laps
• Round 4 – August 7 – Red Bull X2019 Competition/Sardegna Road Track A – 20 laps
• Round 5 – August 14 – N400 (Provided)/Special Stage Route X – 2 laps
• Round 6 – August 25 – N300/Nurburgring Nordschleife – 2 laps
• Round 7 – September 1 – Mazda Roadster TC/Kyoto Driving Park Yamagiwa II – 13 laps
• Round 8 – September 8 – Gr.2/Red Bull Ring – 17 laps
• Round 9 – September 15 – Audi TT Cup/Alsace Village – 12 laps
• Round 10 – September 22 – Gr.3/Laguna Seca – 17 laps

Manufacturer Series

• Round 1 – July 7 – Gr.4/Autodromo de Interlagos – 18 laps
• Round 2 – July 14 – Gr.4/Sardegna Road Track B – 12 laps
• Round 3 – July 28 – Gr.3/Red Bull Ring – 19 laps
• Round 4 – August 4 – Gr.3/Blue Moon Bay Infield A – 28 laps
• Round 5 – August 11 – Gr.4/Dragon Trail Gardens II – 18 laps
• Round 6 – August 28 – Gr.3/Brands Hatch GP – 23 laps
• Round 7 – September 4 – Gr.4/Autodromo Nazionale di Monza – 20 laps
• Round 8 – September 11 – Gr.3/Tsukuba – 37 laps
• Round 9 – September 18 – Gr.3/Lago Maggiore GP – 15 laps
• Round 10 – September 25 – Gr.4/Fuji International Speedway – 20 laps

The first thing that will jump out is the mystery status of the first round of Nations Cup. This kind of blank space is something we’ve previously seen in the schedule when a new car or track (or both) is on the way, and it looks almost certain that this will be the case again. That round takes place two days after the Toyota GR86 will come to GT Sport in an update, so it’s likely that will be the car involved.

There are a few other things of note too. Nations Cup Round 5 sees the return of the fan-favorite Special Stage Route X race. This time the game will supply players with an N400 car — likely a selection of N400s, with specific tunes — for this full throttle two-lap event.

Ten rounds will involve mandatory tire requirements, with six in Nations — the six events using Gr.2/Gr.3/Gr.4/Gr.X cars — and four in Manufacturers. Curiously that doesn’t include Round 10 in the Gr.4 cars at Fuji Speedway, where all three tire grades are available but none are mandatory. That should provide a novel tactical challenge.

Qualifying is again five minutes each round, except for Special Stage Route X (nine minutes) and the Nordschleife (13 minutes) in Nations. Players will also note that the two series switch their days of the week at the halfway point again, with Manufacturers switching from Wednesday to Saturday, and Nations swapping the other way.

Players don’t need to race in every round; only the best four rounds for each player will count towards their final points total. It’s these points that will then determine who will be heading to the 2021 World Final.

Featured image courtesy of Stephan.

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