Catching Up
Hello racing fans, the last six months have gone by very fast. A lot has happened and I haven’t had much time to post until now. That will change in the near future but we’ll get to that later. For now, thank you for your patience, and here’s what’s been happening in the simulator at Big Rock Racing.
Starting with the Gran Turismo World Series and the World Tour online qualifiers held from mid-January through the end of February. For those of you who don’t live and breathe Gran Turismo, the World Tour is a live and in-person championship that brings the best Gran Turismo drivers together from across the globe. Past champions, like Igor Fraga, have found success in real-world motorsports series including Super Formula and Super GT. Only the top drivers in each region of the GT1 division are eligible for this series, and those drivers are chosen in the World Tour Online Qualifiers. Anyone can participate in the Online Qualifier championship, and I encourage you to try. The racing is great, even if you’re not in the GT1 division with an “A” or “A+” driver rating. I was a “B” rated driver and placed in the GT2 division so there was no possibility of travelling the globe and racing on a world stage for me, but I took it seriously and pushed for my best performance possible.
Online Qualifiers kicked off with the Manufacturers Cup and once again I signed with Porsche to drive the 911 RSR for the six-race championship. In a surprise twist before the last race of the season at Watkins Glen the Porsche drivers were delivered a new car, the 911 GT3R (992)! I clicked with this car instantly and found myself running quicker than the 911 RSR in practice. It would carry me to a 2nd place finish at Watkins Glen, my 3rd podium of the series. Calmer nerves and consistency resulted in my best championship result to date, finishing 1st in Washington State, 20th in the United Stated, 129th in North America, and 36th among Porsche-signed drivers in the GT2 league.
| Race | Position | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Road Atlanta | 5th | 95 |
| Dragon Trail – Gardens | 3rd | 104 |
| Deep Forest Raceway | 6th | 95 |
| Nürburgring 24h | 2nd | 75 |
| Spa‑Francorchamps | 4th | 110 |
| Watkins Glen | 2nd | 123 |
World Series 2026 Online Qualifiers - Manufacturers Cup Results
The Nations Cup was next. This championship puts drivers in different cars and conditions, including my nemesis— the ridiculously fast Red Bull X2019 for a challenging six race series. This one was a rollercoaster with a mix of disappointing performances and some of my best drives to date, including my first victory in the World Series at St. Croix in the F3500-A Formula car. In the end it would appear I wasn’t the only one caught out by this series’ challenging lineup. When the points were tallied I found myself once again 1st in Washington State, 15th in the United States, and 21st in North America— improving on my overall finishing position from the Manufacturers Cup just weeks before.
| Race | Car | Position | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spa‑Francorchamps | F3500‑B | 4th | 127 |
| Gilles Villeneuve | Red Bull X2019 | 4th | 126 |
| Nürburgring GP | 911 GT3R | 9th | 96 |
| St. Croix | F3500‑A | 1st | 151 |
| Suzuka | Red Bull X2019 | 6th | 110 |
| Fuji | NSX Concept‑GT | 10th | 92 |
World Series 2026 Online Qualifiers - Nations Cup Results
Shifting gear slightly, let’s talk about the Winter Spec Miata Series, also in Gran Turismo, which exemplifies the phrase "if you want to finish first, first you have to finish". Or in this case, start. Our Spec Miata league has drivers of all skill levels, from noobies to so-fast-they-might-be-aliens. While I'm closer to the alien end of the spectrum my DNA has clear signs of its Earth origins. The trouble with aliens is sightings are rare. And when championship points are on the line showing up is half the battle. Fortunately for this human, I made every race this season and while I never defeated a single alien to stand on the top step of the podium, consistent finishes on or just off the podium added up to an overall victory for me.
| Race | Position | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Watkins Glen Long Course | 4th | 42 |
| Circuit Gilles Villeneuve | 2nd | 45 |
| Laguna Seca | 3rd | 43 |
| Grand Valley Highway 1 | 5th | 61.5 |
| Daytona Road Course | 4th | 42 |
| Blue Moon Bay Infield A | 4th | 42 |
| Trial Mountain | 2nd | 45 |
| Barcelona (no chicane) | 4th | 42 |
| Lago Maggiore East | 2nd | 45 |
| Nurburgring Nordschleife | 2nd | 67.5 |
| Deep Forest Raceway | 3rd | 43 |
| Yas Marina Circuit | 4th | 42 |
| Kyoto Driving Park - Yamagiwa | 3rd | 43 |
| Autopolis Short | 4th | 42 |
Matt Wins the Winter Series Spec Miata Championship
About this same time big things were happening back in the real world. Machinations at work resulted in changes for the better and my motorsports ambitions took a big step forward. At the end of March I attended ProFormance Racing School's two day accredited competition racing course. I'll save the detailed review for later and simply say it was life changing. I don't care where you are, drop what you're doing and check them out. Find a way. Do it. But my next steps for real world motorsports are a story for another day.
Back to Gran Turismo and that pesky "B" driver rating. I have about a year before the next Online Qualifier, so it was time to level up. It shouldn't come as a surprise when I tell you my two days at ProFormance resulted in a significant performance boost in my driving abilities. What might come as a surprise to some is the greatest improvement was in the mental game, not driving technique, thought there was crucial growth here, too. Next time you watch professional racing, pay attention to the demeanor of the drivers. Notice how relaxed they look while driving. As it turns out, this is super important and, counter intuitively, doesn't come from seat time alone. My instructor, Wes, gave me the tools and the confidence to get out of my own head and out of my own way on track. The result-- five back-to-back victories at Road Atlanta in the Porsche 911 GT3R against higher ranked drivers and a promotion to "A" driver rating! Lighter hands and a calmer mind resulted in fewer unforced errors, dramatically increasing my race pace and race craft.
Cut to April/May and the next Gran Turismo World Series Exhibition events. With my "A" driver rating I was now swimming with the sharks in the GT1 division. I want to be realistic with this sort of things. There is always someone faster. So I set my strategy and a modest goal-- race your own race, don't embarrass yourself by throwing it away, and keep your "A" rating. Good news is that I kept my rating and aside from one bone-headed move at Catalunya I managed to keep it clean and competitive for the series. I finished my first Manufacturers Cup in GT1 3rd in Washington State, 40th in the United States, 240th in North America, and 95th for Porsche.
World Series 2026 Exhibition 1 - Manufacturers Cup Results
That brings us today and everything is changing! But this post is long enough already. Thank you for reading, stay tuned for big changs and exciting news about my future and the future of Big Rock Racing!
