Sim racing is one way that many racers can easily bridge their way to a motorsports career. It’s more accessible, usually costing just the price of the video game and the console, plus any other prerequisites, versus the investment needed to get into single-seater racing.
One of the more popular series, the Toyota Gazoo Racing Philippines eSports GT Championship, has been ongoing since 2020 and known over the years in multiple forms, like the 2020 GR Supra GT Cup and the Toyota Gazoo Racing GR GT Cup, has just finished its 2026 edition of its National Finals and crowned the three best sim racers out of the Top 20 who qualified.
Over the course of four races taking place in four various circuits and disciplines– circuit racing, rally racing, GT3 racing, and endurance racing. The races were very exciting as the Top 20 racers battled it out with incredibly close battles and a very tight midfield.
Contestants such as Enzo Ison and Russel Reyes, who are also real life racers who graduated from sim racing ended up dominating their respective classes, with great performances from experienced racers like Michael Vincent Velasquez, Luis Moreno (also a sim racing graduate), and first-timers Chester Jordan Ilog and Luth Ifamy showed amazing potential.
The cars that the racers used were the Toyota GR Corolla, GR Yaris RZ High Performance, the GR Supra Racing Concept ‘18, and the GR010 Hybrid Hypercar, across circuits like Interlagos in Brazil, the fictional Sardegna Windmills rally circuit, Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Spain, and the grueling Nürburgring Nordschleife 24H layout that also introduced wet weather in the mix.
In the end, the top three for the Junior Class ended up being Enzo Ison in first place with 130.5 points, Chester Jordan Ilog in second place with 85 points, and Luth Ifamy with 76.5 points. As for the Sporting Class, first place was bagged by Russel Reyes with 130.5 points, second went to Michael Vincent Velasquez with 93.5 points, and Luis Moreno took third place with 84 points.
The top three racers, Enzo Ison, Russel Reyes, and Michael Vincent Velasquez, will be representing Team Philippines in the upcoming Asia Finals that will take place at the Toyota Alive Space in Bangkok, Thailand. Cheer them on as they battle the other best sim racers across Asia this coming November 14 to 15, 2026.
Photos by Sam Surla, Toyota Gazoo Racing Philippines
