Genesis Motor, one of the world’s newest car manufacturers, is now an official partner of the Gran Turismo World Series, the flagship esports series hosted by Gran Turismo 7.
Founded in 2015, Genesis is a brand that you might not immediately recognize although it greatly depends on where you are.
It was initially the name of a pair of models under the Hyundai brand, with the Genesis sedan and the Genesis Coupe both based on the Hyundai Equus/Kia K9 siblings. You’ll find the Hyundai Genesis Coupe in Gran Turismo Sport and Gran Turismo 7 as the basis of Hyundai’s World Series Manufacturers Cup entry.
After unsuccessfully attempting to sell the Genesis saloon as a mononymous vehicle in Europe, Hyundai went back to the drawing board and spun the car off into its own brand in 2015, with a sports luxury goal. It has recently re-entered the European market, and there’s a good chance you’ll start to see more of its G70, G80 and G90 saloons and GV60, GV70, and GV80 SUVs.
It came as something of a surprise when Genesis was revealed to be coming to Gran Turismo 7. Although one sibling brand, Hyundai, has been in the Gran Turismo series since Gran Turismo Concept in 2002, we’ve never seen its other stablemate Kia.
However, the G70 sedan in the game features the same 3.3-liter V6 turbo as Kia’s sporting flagship Stinger, producing 365hp and delivered to all four wheels.
The brand’s GT7 offering also includes a Gr.4 race car — the game’s equivalent of the real-world GT4 category — based on the G70 and using the same powertrain, and the X Gr.3. This latter car is based on a 2021 concept coupe created by ex-Bentley designer Sangyup Lee, who now works at Genesis.
These are the two vehicles you’ll be driving in the Manufacturers Cup if you choose to represent Genesis in the series, and there’s a pretty good reason to do so. Alongside Mazda and Toyota, Genesis will — as official partner — have an automatic qualifying spot for all the finals events this season.
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