Wolfgang Reip supposedly dropped from NISMO team?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Need4Speed685
  • 86 comments
  • 7,414 views
queleuleu
I think Nissan wants to quit motorsport, except super gt. The GT academy drivers are the first victims.
I don't know for Ordonez, maybe there is a reason, but going from a GT500 wheel to a GT3 wheel in Blancpain isn't a promotion in my opinion.
Click to expand...
Wasn't he just covering for a driver, his normal wide was the GT3 GTR in GT300
 
Makes sense to me. Reip couldn't raise his level sufficiently to that of a professional driver and Nissan can only give drivers so many chances with new graduates entering the system every year. A Buncombe-Chiyo-Ordonez line-up is an upgrade for the RJN.
mustafur
Wasn't he just covering for a driver, his normal wide was the GT3 GTR in GT300
Click to expand...
Yeah, he covered for Krumm. Regardless, he wasn't able to match Sasaki. (To be fair, neither did Krumm when he returned from LM duty, but Mr. Kimiko Date seems to be a big figure at Nissan)
 
queleuleu
I think Nissan wants to quit motorsport, except super gt. The GT academy drivers are the first victims.
I don't know for Ordonez, maybe there is a reason, but going from a GT500 wheel to a GT3 wheel in Blancpain isn't a promotion in my opinion.
Click to expand...
Do you think Nissan wants to quit motorsports, or do you think Renault wants Nissan to quit motorsports?
 
twitcher
Do you think Nissan wants to quit motorsports, or do you think Renault wants Nissan to quit motorsports?
Click to expand...
Renault has no influence over Nissan's motorsports decisions.

Edit: Or any of their road car decisions. It's mostly parts sharing, nothing more.
 
R1600Turbo
I work for Nissan, I should know. The wiki sums it up pretty well. And nobody owns anybody.
Click to expand...

From your link...

Renault currently has a 43.4 percent (fully voting) stake in Nissan, and Nissan holds a 15 percent (non-voting) stake in Renault effectively giving Renault control.
 
R1600Turbo
Renault has no influence over Nissan's motorsports decisions.

Edit: Or any of their road car decisions. It's mostly parts sharing, nothing more.
Click to expand...

And the same CEO of each company plus the alliance. The two companies are married together, separate identities in matrimony.
 
twitcher
Do you think Nissan wants to quit motorsports, or do you think Renault wants Nissan to quit motorsports?
Click to expand...
In 2015, Nissan has sold 5.4 million cars and Renault 2.8 million. http://blog.alliance-renault-nissan.com/node/2851/
I don't think it's a matter of money for Nissan.
If I'm not mistaken GT Academy and the GTR Le Mans weren't from Japan but western ideas. As a matter of fact, about the GT academy drivers : this is not a classy move from Nissan.
 
queleuleu
In 2015, Nissan has sold 5.4 million cars and Renault 2.8 million. http://blog.alliance-renault-nissan.com/node/2851/
I don't think it's a matter of money for Nissan.
If I'm not mistaken GT Academy and the GTR Le Mans weren't from Japan but western ideas. As a matter of fact, about the GT academy drivers : this is not a classy move from Nissan.
Click to expand...

To me, letting Wolfgang Reip & Gaetan Paletou go for 2016 spells the beginning of the end for the GT Academy project. I'm expecting Lucas Ordonez & Chiyo-San to get the chop sooner or later as well.
 
As I previously said, Renault getting back into F1 was only going to cause Nissan to drastically shrink their racing efforts. This is of no surprise. If Nissan isn't going to be running as many cars as they had been, then there's no point in keeping all the drivers under contract.
 
Kingofweasles
To me, letting Wolfgang Reip & Gaetan Paletou go for 2016 spells the beginning of the end for the GT Academy project. I'm expecting Lucas Ordonez & Chiyo-San to get the chop sooner or later as well.
Click to expand...
Chiyo isn't GT Academy though, is he? And I doubt they will let Lucas go. Though I am curious what is going on with Jann as I haven't heard anything about him since sometime last year.
 
R1600Turbo
Chiyo isn't GT Academy though, is he? And I doubt they will let Lucas go. Though I am curious what is going on with Jann as I haven't heard anything about him since sometime last year.
Click to expand...

I think with Jann going mostly in the directon of Open wheel, he'll either be retained or (and this is only a theory) be handed to Renault and possibly end up as a Renault driver. Now that they are effectively back in F1, their development series takes on a more meaningful role and in turn, could speed up Jann's path to F1.
 
Chiyo came from Super GT. I think Jann is still under contract with Carlin and might be moved up to GP2 this year.
 
Another one bites the dust...
Screenshot_2016-02-11-10-38-31.png
 
Well these are good drivers being shafted, it's almost certainly looking like Nissan is going can GT Academy or limit it's size to only a handful.
 
R1600Turbo
Who wants to bet there won't be a competition this year?
Click to expand...

To me it makes sense. Darren Cox was one of the big driving forces behind the GT Academy and with him gone at Nissan, who's to say that the event isn't going to happen? Especially considering that the two drivers cut are GT Academy winners.
 
The GT Academy has served it's purpose and proved it's point. It increased Nissans's sporting profile and its appeal to the youth-end of the market and it provided a lot of promotion for Gran Turismo and Playstation as a whole. I can't really see that it needs to continue, for either Sony or Nissan now.

It's like the X Factor. The first few winners received an inordinate amount of interest through press and promotion, but the novelty has worn off and few people really care who wins these days. The winners now rise and sink before anyone gives a damn.
 
Samus
Stands to reason really, if they're canning known quantities I can't see why they would then want to take on some new blood from the same vein.
Click to expand...
Kingofweasles
To me it makes sense. Darren Cox was one of the big driving forces behind the GT Academy and with him gone at Nissan, who's to say that the event isn't going to happen? Especially considering that the two drivers cut are GT Academy winners.
Click to expand...
I will say that over the last few years the competition had out grown itself. They were bringing in way too many people and not focusing enough on the talent they already had. I think having one winner from North America (incl Canada), one from Europe (incl middle east) and one from Asia would be plenty every year.
 
It's always the way with any public talent contest of this kind, eventually the talent is just going to start running thinner and thinner and you've already found the best you're going to get, with the odd exception.

I'd wager PD probably knew what the situation was going to be a year or more ago and perhaps that is one of several reasons they focused heavily on the FIA competition. Now there will still be a competitive section of the game for the elite, but the prize just isn't quite as grand.
 
I figure they will hang on to Jann, Lucas and maybe Florian for now. It sounds like Bryan may be sticking around in PWC this year. Other than that, who knows.
 
R1600Turbo
Who wants to bet there won't be a competition this year?
Click to expand...

I'm pretty much convinced 2015 was the last GT Academy competition. Anyone who wants to bet against that? Losing team must sport a embarrassing Avatar for a week and after the last time, I feel quite confident of being on the winning side again :sly:
 

Latest Posts

Back