Lucas Ordonez

The GT Academy 2011 driver development programme shifted up a gear last weekend when European winner Jann Mardenborough had his first competitive outing in a 420bhp Nissan 370Z GT4 race car. Racing in the Welsh Sports and GT Championship at Pembrey, Wales, the gamer-turned-racing driver recorded two strong third place finishes and a fourth in the weekend’s three races.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vo8BVV602Oc

As you’ve probably heard by now, GT Academy winner Lucas Ordoñez and his teammates Franck Mailleux and Soheil Ayari drove an incredible race at this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans. Despite two unfortunate tire punctures, they pushed their Signatech Oreca Nissan back up through the field of LMP2 cars – all the way to a second place class finish in the world’s toughest endurance race.

Whether you’re a die-hard GT fan, a Forza fan-boy, or an iRacing snob, anyone who calls themself a “sim-racer” or “gamer” should take special interest in this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans. Starting from class pole, GT Academy winner Lucas Ordoñez has an incredible opportunity to publicize and legitimize our niche hobby on the world stage. Here’s a batch of links and resources to help you follow along throughout the weekend. Good luck to Lucas and the Signatech team!

GT Academy winner Lucas Ordoñez and his Signatech Racing team are off to an incredible start at Le Mans, taking class pole in the LMP2 category with a 3:41.458 around La Sarthe. That’s 1.1 seconds ahead of the next LMP2 challenger, and nearly half a second faster than Oak Racing’s LMP1 car! For more, see the full qualifying results along with this overview of the day’s events.

The 24 Hours of Le Mans is just a few weeks away now, and Lucas Ordoñez is doing what he can to get ready. Take a look at this video which shows one of the more interesting ways Lucas is being psychologically prepared for the hardships of a 24-hour race, with a simulated endurance drive around England in a Nissan GT-R.

GT Academy winner Lucas Ordoñez and his Signatech Nissan team competed in the Spa Francorchamps 1000km on Saturday, in front of a massive crowd of over 35,000 people. Starting from third-place qualifying position in the LMP2 class, Signatech took the class lead in the first corner of the race. All went well until contact with a GT car required work in the pits that put them 4 laps down, then a steering problem later in the race required even more unexpected repairs.

Winner of the first GT Academy and ILMC 2011 driver Lucas Ordonez has teamed up with other drivers on the grid at this weekend’s Spa Francorchamps 1000km to host a track-side Gran Turismo 5 challenge, benefiting victims of the devastating tsunamis in Japan.

GTPlanet is very excited to team up with Nissan to co-host a live Twitter question & answer session with Lucas Ordonez, the real-world racing star that’s emerged from the first GT Academy competition! As you know, Lucas and his Signatech Nissan team just finished second-in-class at the 12 Hours of Sebring, the first race in the 2011 International Le Mans Cup calendar. They’ll be participating in all the events around the world this year, including the ultimate endurance race – the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

GT Academy winner Lucas Ordonez and his Signatech Nissan team finished second in class during their first race: the challenging 12 Hours of Sebring. After starting on pole, the team was forced to battle with gearbox and electrical issues, but still managed to bring the car home in one piece with a very respectable finish. Check the official race report for a complete overview of all the results.

Winner of the first GT Academy, Lucas Ordoñez, has just been announced as a driver with Team Signatech Nissan, to compete in the 2011 International Le Mans Cup – including the 24 Hours of Le Mans! He’ll be piloting their ORECA O3 LMP2 car at ILMC events around the world, starting with the 12 Hours of Sebring next month.

I’m very excited to announce that I will be personally attending the Gran Turismo 5 Launch Party in Madrid, Spain, this Wednesday, November 24th! Sony has been keeping very close wraps on what’s in store for the event, but it’s definitely going to be very big, and very special… It’s more than just a party, and should be a real treat for all automotive enthusiasts and the general public – be sure and stop by if you’re in the area.

If you’re anywhere near Madrid this weekend, head on over to GameFest 2010 where you’ll find a Gran Turismo 5 demo in the game’s massive booth at the show. Although there doesn’t appear to be anything new revealed or announced, Sony’s holding a “Championship” each day, with a voucher for a free copy of the game presumably up for grabs. Details are scarce – check the full schedule of events here.

Great news for our man Lucas Ordoñez (winner of the first GT Academy)! Lucas and his team, RJN Motorsports, have qualified their Nissan 370Z have first in its class for the Spa 24 Hours race this weekend. I’m not aware of any online live video streams of the race (if you find one, please share it in the comments below), but Lucas has promised me that he’ll be constantly updating his Twitter feed and his Facebook page directly from the paddock throughout the event. Good luck, Lucas!

GTPlanet’s own Maziar Shahsafdari (Synwraith) joined RJN Motorsports last weekend for their first race of the season, and he’s come away with a new appreciation for GT Academy winners Jordan Tresson and Lucas Ordoñez. His close contact with everyone in the team has provided an inside look at who these guys really are, and explains how their mental toughness sets them apart from the rest of us. It’s a great read, and I guarantee you’ll come away from the article with a new perspective on the GT Academy program and the driving talent it has discovered so far. Click here to check it out, and be sure to leave a word of thanks to Maziar for all of his hard work in putting this together (thanks again, Maz!)! I’d also like GTP reader Casey for sharing the following pictures from last weekend’s race:

The 2010 racing season is kicking off around the world, and GTPlanet is proud to support the first GT Academy winner Lucas Ordoñez in this year’s GT4 European Cup and TKi Motorsport, competing in the NASA Pro Racing Northeast Series here in the United States. Both are off to a great start, with TKi having scored a podium finish in their first race. I’ll be sharing occasional updates about their progress, or you can easily monitor their updates with Facebook or Twitter at the links below. Good luck, guys!

At the Spanish GT Academy 2010 finals, Lucas Ordoñez, winner of the first GT Academy, got to try his hand at the latest GT5 build running the competition. Here’s his lap around the Nurburgring Nordschleife! Thanks to everyone (including Lucas himself!) for sending this in.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9V2YgZ7jjY

Before the Gran Turismo 5 Time Trial Demo was released to the public, it was open to a few members of the press and special VIPs involved with the GT series. While their hot laps and replays were taken offline when the leader boards were reset, they live on thanks to more videos via TaxiGamer. Below you’ll find clips of Kazunori Yamauchi and the first GT Academy winner, Lucas Ordonez. Six-time WRC champion Sebastian Loeb was also spotted in the rankings, though I can’t find any video footage of his lap at the moment. If you have it, please share the link below!

When Lucas Ordonez won the first GT Academy, we all knew he had a lot of expectations riding on his shoulders. He would be given the opportunity to enter a 24 hour endurance race with world-class drivers and sim racers everywhere watched closely as he lived the dream. Since then, we’ve seen him win races and fight for the FIA GT4 driver’s championship around the world. He made it look all too easy, but as this latest interview shows, his accomplishments are the result of a lot of determination and hard work.