Final 16 contestants in U.S. GT Academy to compete at Silverstone in June

The remaining 16 contestants in the U.S. GT Academy will head to England's Silverstone circuit for a weeklong boot camp in June, Sony Computer Entertainment America and Nissan North America said Wednesday.

The GT Academy began with 53,000 registrants who competed for the opportunity to race for Nissan in an undisclosed event. Contestants competed using the Gran Turismo 5 video game, which is only available on the PlayStation 3 console.

The final 16 competitors proved to be the fastest and will now take their skills from the console to the circuit at Silverstone in June.

“We look forward to getting our finalists behind the wheel at the Silverstone circuit as we get one step closer to crowning our first GT Academy winner for the United States,” said Scott Steinberg, vice president of product marketing for Sony Computer Entertainment America.

The weeklong boot camp will test the competitors' physical and mental abilities. The drivers will have the opportunity to prove themselves behind the wheel of actual Nissan race cars. They will be judged by a panel of racing professionals based on skills, performance and aptitude. The panel will then eliminate the contestants until only one remains.

By Brad Constant