We’ve got something more like normal service in the latest set of Gran Turismo 7 Daily Races, beginning this morning, as three new races arrive in the most common arrangement seen across the game’s four-year life to date.
That’s the regular one-make road car race in the first slot, a Gr.4 sprint race in the second, and a longer, more tactical event for the Gr.3 cars in the final spot to bring a sense of familiarity after some recent mayhem.
Though there’s only a couple of races left in the current GT World Series Exhibition season, the Daily Races remain the only way you can raise your Driver Rating to get into a higher league for more points or — and we’d request not — tank it to grab more credits at season’s end.
Gran Turismo 7 Daily Races May 25th: Race A
- Track: Suzuka Circuit – 3 laps
- Car: Honda Integra (DC2) Type R ’95 – Garage/Specified Car
- Power/Weight/PP Limit: BOP (M)
- Tyres: Comfort Soft
- Settings: Specified
- Start Type: Rolling Start
- Required Pit Stops: –
- Fuel Rate Multiplier: 1x
- Tyre Rate Multiplier: 1x
One-make race for road cars? Check. Suzuka Circuit? Check. Honda Integra Type R? Check. It’s about as routine a Daily Race as they come as you’re taking what’s arguably the finest performance front-wheel drive car ever made for a spin at the full Suzuka circuit for a three-lap race.
Your car will be in entirely stock form, right down to the original Comfort Soft tyres, for this one so there’s no need to expend any particular thought over the vehicle. Of course you can, as usual, borrow one for no charge but it will be in standard colours only (which doesn’t include the yellow we’re running), if you haven’t picked one up from the Used Car Dealer just yet — and don’t buy the ’98 car you can currently find there.
Recommended Car: Honda Integra (DC2) Type R ’95
Gran Turismo 7 Daily Races May 25th: Race B
- Track: Deep Forest Raceway – 5 laps
- Car: Gr.4 – Garage/Specified Car
- Power/Weight/PP Limit: BOP (M)
- Tyres: Racing Hard
- Settings: Partially Allowed – Brake Balance
- Start Type: Rolling Start
- Required Pit Stops: –
- Fuel Rate Multiplier: 1x
- Tyre Rate Multiplier: 1x
The worlds of Gran Turismo old and new collide in our second race, bringing us a Gr.4 race at the reworked Deep Forest Raceway circuit.
It’s another simple-enough event, just requiring you to pick your preferred Gr.4 car for this race on Racing Hard (ugh) tyres. As usual, the rather imbalanced class means that one drivetrain type — or often one car — comes to the fore and given the two big full-throttle sections after slow corners at Deep Forest that’s going to mean all-wheel drive cars this week.
Whatever your choice, it’s a straightforward five laps with no strategy required.
Recommended Car: Mazda Atenza Gr.4
Gran Turismo 7 Daily Race May 25th: Race C
- Track: Watkins Glen – 11 laps
- Car: Gr.3 – Garage/Specified Car
- Power/Weight/PP Limit: BOP (L)
- Tyres: Racing Hard*, Racing Soft*
- Settings: Partially Allowed – Brake Balance
- Start Type: Rolling Start
- Required Pit Stops: -*
- Fuel Rate Multiplier: 2x
- Tyre Rate Multiplier: 5x
However, Race C this week does have some strategy involved, and there’s something just a little unusual to it in that we get a rare step between two tyre grades.
It’s otherwise a routine 11-lap race at Watkins Glen in the Gr.3 cars, so for the most part it should be pretty familiar and you’ll be using whatever your preferred Gr.3 car is. You’ll be required to use the Racing Hard and Racing Soft tyre for this one though, which means you’ll have to take a stop at some point during the race to switch from one grade to the other.
When you want to pit is up to you, but that 5x tyre wear multiplier will chew up those Softs pretty quickly so you’re likely going to want to run at least half the race — preferably the first half, while the car is heavy with fuel — before coming in. Unless you’re a tyre whisperer, you might want to carry on for another lap on the Hard options too, for a 7/4 split.
Watkins Glen does have one of the worst pit lane entries in the game, and penalties for crossing the solid yellow line are going to be likely as it starts before the last corner and it’s very easy to wash out of the channel. It’s a three-second penalty to be served on-track too, although this does pale next to the one-minute time penalty you’ll land for not using both tyre grades.
Recommended Car: BMW M6 GT3 Endurance ’16
Gran Turismo 7 Daily Races are the main ranked, scheduled multiplayer events in Gran Turismo 7, updating every Monday and running every 20-30 minutes across the week. Each race result contributes to your Driver Rating (DR) and Sportsmanship Rating (SR), depending on your final race position and any incidents during the race respectively. These ratings update at the end of each race, with DR used to set your league for the qualifying events for the GT World Series esports competition and exhibition events.
In order to access Gran Turismo 7 Daily Races, you’ll need to unlock the game’s Sport Mode. This requires you to complete the GT Cafe single player hub’s Menu Book 9 (“Championship: Tokyo Highway Parade”). You’ll also need a PlayStation Plus subscription in order to take part.