An official Toyota esports competition running in Gran Turismo 7 is now available for players in Malaysia, offering a chance to attend the Toyota Gazoo Racing GT Cup Finals and a $4,500 first prize.
It’s called the GR Velocity Esports Championship, and it’s officially in its fifth season — even though the global competition is only in its fourth year.
The competition is open to anyone legally resident in Malaysia during the tournament — July to August 2022 — either as a permanent resident or citizen, or a permit or visa holder to work or study in the country, and aged 14 or older.
Players must register on the official competition website and then select a qualifying session they wish to enter. There they get a chance to set a lap time at Willow Springs Big Willow in the Toyota GR Yaris RZ in a special online session in GT7.
These slots are almost all booked out now, right up to the competition closing date on July 19, though it’s also possible to attend an in-person qualifier at Axle Academy racing school at Sunway Serene in Petaling Jaya.
Once all the qualifiers have ended, the eligible players with the top 40 times will be invited to a pair of online quarter-final sessions to select the top 20 drivers. They’ll advance to a live semi-final held at the 1 Utama shopping center in Petaling Jaya on August 6.
The ten best semi-final drivers will advance to the grand final the next day, featuring a pair of races at Interlagos and Spa in a Toyota Supra GT500.
Whoever wins will become Malaysia’s champion, taking a 20,000RM ($4,500) share of a 70,000RM ($16,000) total prize fund — a rare monetary prize for what’s ultimately an official Gran Turismo tournament.
In addition, they’ll become Malaysia’s representative at the Toyota GR GT Cup Asia, a competition which provides three drivers to the Toyota Gazoo Racing GT Cup Finals alongside the online qualifiers.
See more articles on GR Supra GT Cup.
