Matt Simmons’ tips to becoming a pro gamer

MATT Simmons was working as an Australia Post delivery driver in 2015, before winning Nissan’s GT Academy.

Now, he races full-time as a factory Nissan GT3 driver in Europe.

Simmons had previously honed his skills on the Gran Turismo driving sim series, the latest iteration of which was launched today with a more motorsport and Esports focus than anything else from the creators Polyphony Digital.

Gran Turismo Sport will have two championships recognised by the global motorsport governing body (FIA), so we sat down with Simmons to get his tips on how to turn your lounge room hobby, into a successful professional virtual racing career.

Nissan GT-R tops 211km/h driven with gaming controller

Simmons says you should:

1. Get a copy. It seems simple enough, but it really is the first step to becoming a pro. “Go practice, as the saying goes practice makes perfect.”
2. Prepare yourself and be committed, it takes a lot of hard work, and is more than just twiddling your thumbs.
3. Join an online community. Sim racing is strong in Australia, and Simmons says the healthy and supportive community helped him learn a lot of his skills. If you have got a question, there will usually be someone willing to help you out.
4. Go to the gym. While most sim racing is done sitting down, it’s important to take care of your physical health. You’ll need to keep yourself fit, because racing drivers have to be fit. Racing, whether real or virtual, is a very demanding sport.
5. Race in the real world. Get out and see if you can get on track. Do some karting with mates, as it is always a lot of fun, and you can put virtual skills into practice. If you’ve got the ability, a track day with a professional driver coach will help improve your talents both in GT Sport and the real world.
6. Enjoy yourself. Make sure you grab whatever opportunities you can with both hands, but most importantly enjoy yourself and have fun.

That’s it. If you think what Simmons does for a living is your cup of tea, then there has never been a better time to get into sim racing.

The FIA recognised Nations Cup run on GT Sport will have representatives from countries around the world competing against each other, with qualifying events not far away.

Better get practicing.