In 2009, we told you about Spaniard Lucas Ordoñez, who won a Gran Turismo competition that gave him a shot at racing a real car. Fast forward to 2011 and the guy just made the podium at Le Mans, one of the world’s most gruelling and prestigious car races.
Ordoñez, who only a few years ago was a uni student bumming around playing GT in his spare time, has been racing professionally for a little while now thanks to his win in the GT Academy competition (which gave game players the chance to race real cars), but there’s a big difference between toiling away in the nether-regions of European motorsport to participating in the Le Mans 24 hour endurance race.
Part of the Signatech Nissan team, whose cars were complete with massive PlayStation livery, Ordoñez and his teammates Franck Mailleux and Soheil Ayari overcame two punctures to finish second in their class for the race, which while not second overall is still a great achievement.
Last time I ran a race that well I got a sore thumb and sore eyes. Ordoñez gets to stand on the podium, be showered with expensive champagne and race fast cars for a living. Well played, sir, well played.
GT Academy Winner Gains Podium Finish At Le Mans [PlayStation]
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