Kazunori yamauchi- publicity stunt?

[obsessive rules]

KAZ races in the 24h Nurburgring and I have heard that this is a publicity stunt, yet I feel it isn't. I want your views, is his racing just a massive advert or is he serious?

 

[Diogo]

He is driving a GT-R ... I think it's serious

 

[VTiRoj]

It's most likely both. He probably is serious about his racing, but at the same time it's a good opportunity to get more sponsorship money from Nissan.

 

[CAMAROBOY69]

I vote for the 3rd option thats not listed....both.

 

[Gejabo]

He has done so for the last two years.
And is pretty serious about it.

And yes it is great publicity for GT5.

So I'd vote both.

 

[Griffith500]

Obviously both!

 

[gman1647]

GT racing has a long history of "gentleman racers." I think Kaz fits this category. He's not, nor does he intend to be a pro, but he is a serious enthusiasts who is quite a good driver. At any ALMS race there are quite a few wealthy business men who drive in the GT or even prototype classes. While they often advertise for the company that they own, their motivation for racing is the sure joy of the sport.

Additionally, it wouldn't be a publicity stunt for Nissan because he didn't drive for a factory team, and he has raced there for other manufacturers (like Toyota with the LFA).

 

[Earth]

Biggest publicity stunt of them all, IMO, GT Academy

 

[mrkevans]

I think we would all in his position do the same!

 

[obsessive rules]

Biggest publicity stunt of them all, IMO, GT Academy

IMO. That's a publicity stunt for Nissan.

 

[analog]

If by serious you mean he intends to become a professional racing driver then no, he's just another 'gentleman race driver' who enjoys racing and I guess if it wasn't attracting publicity (which it obviously does) he'd still do it.
Why? Because he can, and nobody enters a 24 hour race on the Nurburgring without being serious.

IMO. That's a publicity stunt for Nissan.

It's still called GT-Academy, not Nissan driving school made possible by GT.

 

[obsessive rules]

It's still called GT-Academy, not Nissan driving school made possible by GT.

Yes but it dosent have to have Nissan GTacademy like so.

 

[Griffith500]

Well, if you're going to use lots of sporty cars as part of the selection process, you might as well get someone else, namely a manufacturer of such cars, to foot the bill in return for them to get a little extra marketing exposure.

The fact is that without the collaboration with Nissan, the Academy probably just wouldn't work, and would certainly not have the factory-sponsored drive at the end of it! You can call it a gimmick, but it truly is a dream come true for the winners.

 

[MSTER232]

KAZ races in the 24h Nurburgring and I have heard that this is a publicity stunt, yet I feel it isn't. I want your views, is his racing just a massive advert or is he serious?

Get the AdBlock Plus Add-on. Job Done.

 

[RReed43]

I think it excellent that the man who leads PD personally is capable of driving a race car in the 24hr Nurburgring. His vision is to deliver a sim experience which resembles the real life experience as closely as possible on a console. I can't think of any qualification for his job better than this.

 

[obsessive rules]

I agree, he's a serious racer. Anyone willing to drive 3-4 hours at the ring has to be serious.

 

[McClarenDesign]

He has done so for the last two years.
And is pretty serious about it.

And yes it is great publicity for GT5.

So I'd vote both.

Couldn't hurt.

 

[daan]

Edited poll to add "a bit of both."

 

[obsessive rules]

Edited poll to add "a bit of both."

Thanks

 

[MSTER232]

Edited poll to add "a bit of both."

For a second I thought you could edit your own polls but I just remembered that daan is a moderator and has the power to change or remove polls and posts. Then again it is a good suggestion that you could be able to edit your polls that you make in the future.

 

[Nielsen]

For Gran Turismo? I doubt that.

 

[Earth]

He has a really old interview, I believe around the GT2 days, where he says he wanted to be a racecar driver but growing up in Japan that was difficult to do.

So he definitely races for the fun of it and Nissan helps pay the bills and he pays them back by adding so many Skylines and Zs to the game.

 

[llNovall]

IMO. That's a publicity stunt for Nissan.

Definately a Nissan publicity campaign. Kaz just provided the means to do it.

 

[llNovall]

Both for sure, and for all the right reasons, especially the passion for motorsport. Any one of us would do the same if we had the opportunity.

 

[Griffith500]

Definately a Nissan publicity campaign. Kaz just provided the means to do it.

No, I'm fairly certain it was Nissan and Sony with the means.
Publicity is the reason the means are available, GT Academy is the opportunity for that publicity, and Kaz and co. had the idea of teaching real driving techniques in GT since the very beginning, the motivation behind which has been vindicated by Kaz's own real-world racing experience since then.

GT Academy is a natural extension of that motivation, with the necessary (and some bonus) incentives for those with the means to make it happen.

 

[CSLACR]

Yes but it dosent have to have Nissan GTacademy like so.

It's called sponsorship, and it makes our world go 'round.

 

[Mac K]

It's called sponsorship, and it makes our world go 'round.

Quoted for truth..

 

[obsessive rules]

Yes BUT it sows gtacademy isn't just pds doing.

 

[another_jakhole]

GT racing has a long history of "gentleman racers." I think Kaz fits this category. He's not, nor does he intend to be a pro, but he is a serious enthusiasts who is quite a good driver. At any ALMS race there are quite a few wealthy business men who drive in the GT or even prototype classes. While they often advertise for the company that they own, their motivation for racing is the sure joy of the sport.

Additionally, it wouldn't be a publicity stunt for Nissan because he didn't drive for a factory team, and he has raced there for other manufacturers (like Toyota with the LFA).

👍

His first win with the Schulze GT-R at the Ring was only possible after being invited to join the privately-owned team; he almost didnt compete if it weren't for the guys (two brothersand their father) asking him to join since they knew he was interested. Nissan didnt contribute the resources. I'm not sure if this year was the same.

 

[THEPUNISHER]

He likes racing and its sponsor ship for him so both.