What’s the most beneficial circuit to master?

[Tou2istTrophy]

If you could only master one track in GT Sport, which one would help you become faster overall across all tracks? Basically, which track would you be rewarded in pace the most for putting time in consistently?

 

[TonyJZX]

I'm a bit uncertain about this... I think being good at Spa or any of the big F1 tracks isnt going to transfer all that much to the Ring or Bathurst or Le Mans...

I'm pretty decent at Nurburgring F1 but readily admit that once that 2 mins ends, the next 23km is kind of a slog.

I'm of the opinion that some of the 'foundation' tracks (as it were) like Brands Hatch or Laguna Seca tends to ground you into how to take corners smoothly.

 

[Alpha Cipher]

Hmm, Nurburgring is always a go-to. Just about every single type of corner there is in the world is present at that track. The bumpiness would not only make you think about your inputs, but also the balance of the car itself. However, it will not teach you any racecraft

 

[TonyJZX]

One of the great joys is clean overtaking so I dont know what track is really full of overtaking opportunities,,, its certainly not Bathurst.

Spa is one, so is Suzuka... something like a full field with you in a slightly OP car on a track with many open corners helps you do that.

The PD tracks tend to have lots of overtaking.

 

[barkohba]

I'm a bit uncertain about this... I think being good at Spa or any of the big F1 tracks isnt going to transfer all that much to the Ring or Bathurst or Le Mans...

I'm pretty decent at Nurburgring F1 but readily admit that once that 2 mins ends, the next 23km is kind of a slog.

I'm of the opinion that some of the 'foundation' tracks (as it were) like Brands Hatch or Laguna Seca tends to ground you into how to take corners smoothly.

Neither Spa nor Laguna Seca aren't in GTS.

 

[CodeCmdr]

I'd vote Interlagos. I think it has a lot of complex corners that require a well-balanced set of skills, both in time-trial and actual races.

T1/T2: blind, off-camber, very hard to find the perfect brake-point to flow through T1 and exit T2 at maximum speed. Also hard to defend, as people like to dive in deep from the inside.
T4/T5: requires trail-braking, easy to over-shoot and go too wide.
T6/T7: very fast entry, hard to find the best line, requires a lot of skill to get through without losing too much speed.
T8: difficult to defend, because it's so wide and people like attacking here
T9: curbs are bumpy, very subtle double-apex, requires lots of of throttle-finesse.
T10: similar to T8, and I find it hard to exit this corner smoothly because it's hard to see the next one (I think goes over a crest).
T11: fast, bumpy, and I find it quite risky once tires start wearing down. Slightly off-camber as well I think
T12: hard braking, very bad camber, hard to see the exit line.

 

[TheNorfolkDad]

If it’s the track I absolutely cannot master it’s Brands Hatch, if I could nail that circuit I’d be a much better driver.

 

[cleanLX]

I think generally there are 2 basic kinds of tracks...
Flowing... Suzuka, NurbGP, Nords... If you need work on linking turns (give and take) these are good options.
and.
Punch it, brake and repeat... Brands, Interlagos, Monza... if you need to work on threshold braking, cornering limits and traction management these are good options.

Unfortunately being good at one type does not make you good at the other.

There are the hybrid tracks... that incorporate both general types... Bathurst, LeMans most of the PD tracks. These are good tracks to master overall, but not the best tracks to "train" on (IMO)... reason being I believe you should focus your training... Sitting on the straights of LeMans waiting for the Porsche curves to show up is not a good use of time if you are working on linking turns... and if you need to work on stop/go, running up over the mountain and down the other side is a lot of time passed waiting for the straights and 90* corners to come back to you.

Having said that, every track presents it's own unique challenges, and the only way to be fast at everywhere, is to practice everywhere.

 

[CodeCmdr]

If it’s the track I absolutely cannot master it’s Brands Hatch, if I could nail that circuit I’d be a much better driver.

Brands Hatch T1 is one of the hardest corners on any race track, I think. T4 is low-risk but is also really hard to get right.

 

[TheNorfolkDad]

Agreed, Paddock hill bend and Surtees, hate them haha

 

[_ApexPredator]

I'd vote Interlagos. I think it has a lot of complex corners that require a well-balanced set of skills,

If it’s the track I absolutely cannot master it’s Brands Hatch, if I could nail that circuit I’d be a much better driver.

Those are both great shouts, and @Alpha Cipher, yeah it's pretty hard to argue against the ring.
OP you need a top 3 really, I'd say the returns you'd see from mastering 3 over 1 would be exponential; you've got 3 good ones to learn there:

1. Brands Hatch GP (not the Indy layout)
Start with this one. The hardest corner as said, is Paddock, and it's the first corner too, so easy to restart and try something different and you instantly see the result. The whole track is quite narrow, so you'll have to concentrate, it's quite bumpy in places too. Then onto the GP sectors there are some fast corners, and Sheene is blind so you'll need to learn where to turn in and do it on reference - a key skill to acquire.
2. Interlagos
Agree with everything already said, really good track guide for you right there! Learn a track in whatever you can drive the best. I always use the kart.
3. Nurburgring 24hr
Two for one Nurb GP track is a great one to learn, you really need to connect the corners in the first sector, focus on good exits, and obviously the ring itself is very technical, narrow and bumpy; master that and you'll surely be a better driver.

and then you could go back to Brands and work back through them, bet you'll go faster.

 

[Jamie Bbbbb]

Brands, Suzuka and Nurburgring all have a wide variety of corner types and are very frequent in daily races. I was able to find a lot of time at Nurburgring recently from watching the top 10 times in Gr.2 and Gr.3 races, which indicates to me that you really have to put in effort and have understanding of how to go faster if you want to do well there. Brands comes more naturally to me, and I could be considerably better at Suzuka.

 

[DriftMethod]

First of all, great answers from everyone!

Instead of naming a track, I'm offering my simple process to pick the most beneficial.

1. Pick from the real circuits that are used most often in Daily/FIA races: Suzuka full, Interlagos, Brands GP, or Nurb GP.
2. Choose the one that is the most intimidating to you.

Here's my reasoning:

• Each of these tracks will be used often and in other racing games as well.
• It's fun to watch real races and learn how real drivers pass, defend, use different lines, etc.
• It's probably intimidating because of a weakness in your driving. So you'll improve the most overall by eliminating that weakness.
• They aren't too short or long, so not boring and don't take an excessive amount of time to learn.
• They accommodate basically every class of car, so street cars to Gr. 1 can be used.

Brands GP was that track for me. I decided to face it and spent about a week practicing it in different cars. It went from the most daunting to my absolute favorite! Now, it's the track that I am most competitive at. Also, I know why a lot of people are afraid of it and can exploit those fears in a race! 💡

 

[05XR8]

I'm comfortable at all tracks but that last turn at Maggiore GP. Dang blast it!
I brake too much and late on the throttle. I seem to wait wait wait.. NOWGO! Other players just brake and speed away from me.

Not to say it would make me faster at all the other tracks, but getting on the power earlier and trusting the car's grip, to not change my trajectory for the wall, is a minor struggle.

 

[Tou2istTrophy]

Thanks everyone for replying! It’s interesting to think about.

 

[Veinz]

Suzuka has a bit of everything so that's what I'd choose.

 

[Crazy Taylor]

In a nutshell. The one you are most comfortable/feel fastest on.

 

[Vader86]

I'd say if you can master the ring then you can master anything.

 

[adb]

Suzuka. S Curves will teach you an awful lot about setting up corners, steering/throttle/brake inputs, weight transfer. After that you have many different, fairly difficult corners, Degner, Hairpin, Spoon Curve, Casio, all very different. And it's fun.

Love Brands Hatch (the GP layout), it's great fun when you master it but I don't feel like you learn anything that useful for other tracks, well maybe patience (re Paddock Hill and Surtees)

 

[TheGeologist]

Blue Moon Bay Infield A really helped me think about racing lines on other tracks. When I first started racing at Infield A, my line was bad and I was wicked slow. Once I better understood racing lines by making laps there, it helped me a lot at other tracks.

 

[Amaru]

Easy. There are two kinds of tracks throughout the world.

- technical tracks
- high speed tracks

In GTS, either Suzuka or the Nordschleife are THE tracks to make yourself a better driver (both technical tracks; refer to the GT Apex guide for more info on both).

Interlagos can and never will be a track to improve your OWN driver techniques on because of the extremely slow sector 2 & 3.

In GTS, Suzuka, without a doubt.

 

[TheGeologist]

Interlagos can and never will be a track to improve your OWN driver techniques on because of the extremely slow sector 2 & 3.

That is silly. Any track, even an oval, can help you learn racing techniques.

From Interlagos, I learned that "slow in, fast out" can be more effective than charging a corner. From Interlagos, I learned that having patience behind a slower car is critical and maintaining position can cause them to make a mistake. From Interlagos, I understood how to race traffic.

 

[VFOURMAX1]

The one you will be racing on next!

 

[DriftMethod]

Love Brands Hatch (the GP layout), it's great fun when you master it but I don't feel like you learn anything that useful for other tracks, well maybe patience (re Paddock Hill and Surtees)

Brands is the best track to learn: Understeer will destroy your lap.

 

[Amaru]

That is silly. Any track, even an oval, can help you learn racing techniques.

From Interlagos, I learned that "slow in, fast out" can be more effective than charging a corner. From Interlagos, I learned that having patience behind a slower car is critical and maintaining position can cause them to make a mistake. From Interlagos, I understood how to race traffic.

True, but not silly. You will learn more on technical tracks. You can learn "slow in, fast out" in the Suzuka SS's, even around the entire nordschleife if you purely focus on practicing driving technique.

GT5's GT Apex Guide clearly states this.

 

[adb]

Brands is the best track to learn: Understeer will destroy your lap.

Understeer will destroy lap on any circuit, Brands is very unique but I always felt like experience you gain there doesn’t translate well to other tracks

 

[AlexLion]

Understeer will destroy lap on any circuit, Brands is very unique but I always felt like experience you gain there doesn’t translate well to other tracks

Can relate to this, I got top 10 twice in sport mode leaderboards on Brands, I’m always at least a second off top times at any other track

 

[Brzlav]

I'd vote Interlagos. I think it has a lot of complex corners that require a well-balanced set of skills, both in time-trial and actual races.

T1/T2: blind, off-camber, very hard to find the perfect brake-point to flow through T1 and exit T2 at maximum speed. Also hard to defend, as people like to dive in deep from the inside.
T4/T5: requires trail-braking, easy to over-shoot and go too wide.
T6/T7: very fast entry, hard to find the best line, requires a lot of skill to get through without losing too much speed.
T8: difficult to defend, because it's so wide and people like attacking here
T9: curbs are bumpy, very subtle double-apex, requires lots of of throttle-finesse.
T10: similar to T8, and I find it hard to exit this corner smoothly because it's hard to see the next one (I think goes over a crest).
T11: fast, bumpy, and I find it quite risky once tires start wearing down. Slightly off-camber as well I think
T12: hard braking, very bad camber, hard to see the exit line.

Agree and to add to T12: The speed you are carrying through the corner here has a tremendous effect on your laptime and sets you up to overtake or being attacked. It's a great corner for learning how to optimize your exit speed.
Unfortunately, I quite often fail to master it...

 

[DriftMethod]

Understeer will destroy lap on any circuit, Brands is very unique but I always felt like experience you gain there doesn’t translate well to other tracks

True about the understeer, but Brands will put you in the gravel/grass a lot quicker than almost anywhere.

I understand that Brands doesn't have connected turns that other tracks do. But don't dismiss it as a learning tool. For Aliens, it might be a bit simple, but it's a track that takes a lot more precision than others to set a good time.

I always say racing is a compromise. The thing with Brands is since they are all independent turns with different entries and exits, you can't sacrifice a single turn and make up for it on a connected turn. Suzuka S curves, for example, can be taken with slightly different lines and it won't kill your lap time. Since a small compromise on one turn can be a benefit on the next. The compromises you make at Brands will teach you how to squeeze every last tenth out of a corner and that is what translates to any other turn at any other track.

In my opinion, until tracks like Brands are mastered, it doesn't make sense to focus on the "complicated" tracks. Sorry, bad reference here, but jumping into F1 won't make anyone a better driver if they can't master a kart.

 

[Alpha Cipher]

True about the understeer, but Brands will put you in the gravel/grass a lot quicker than almost anywhere.

I understand that Brands doesn't have connected turns that other tracks do. But don't dismiss it as a learning tool. For Aliens, it might be a bit simple, but it's a track that takes a lot more precision than others to set a good time.

I always say racing is a compromise. The thing with Brands is since they are all independent turns with different entries and exits, you can't sacrifice a single turn and make up for it on a connected turn. Suzuka S curves, for example, can be taken with slightly different lines and it won't kill your lap time. Since a small compromise on one turn can be a benefit on the next. The compromises you make at Brands will teach you how to squeeze every last tenth out of a corner and that is what translates to any other turn at any other track.

In my opinion, until tracks like Brands are mastered, it doesn't make sense to focus on the "complicated" tracks. Sorry, bad reference here, but jumping into F1 won't make anyone a better driver if they can't master a kart.

I'm quite horrible at Brands, but my substitute for it is Tsukuba. It's pretty much as technical and tight as Brands, with independent turns. The difference though is elevation difference, with Tsukuba being a much flatter track