Why Esports Matter for Genesis

The Korean luxury brand is about to go racing in the big leagues, but it’s already got digital experience.

Genesis is heading to Le Mans. The brand last week announced its intentions to join the growing LMDh endurance racing class, its first major real-world motorsports program since becoming its own brand not even a decade ago. “We have carefully analyzed LMDh and found it to be a natural fit for our motorsport ambitions and a valuable platform to drive the development of future mobility technologies for road cars,” read a statement from the company.

Except Genesis has been competing on the world’s race tracks for years already, with some of the best drivers in their class. Genesis has been a partner in the Gran Turismo World Series since 2022, the popular sim racing game’s top competition. Drivers from around the world compete online and in person with live audiences. I witnessed the year’s first live event earlier this year, with eager fans lining up around the block for a chance to watch a few hours of close racing. For Genesis, it’s an opportunity to get out in front of new faces. “Supporting sporting events [like the Genesis Invitational] and virtual gaming allows Genesis to promote our brand to like-minded individuals and enthusiasts,” said a company spokesperson. “Each of these programs provides us with an opportunity to showcase the brand and interact with different audiences.”

Gran Turismo has existed for over 25 years at this point. To put that into perspective for Genesis (and parent company Hyundai): the Tiburon arrived on North American shores the same year as the first Gran Turismo. An entire generation has grown up with GT as a major automotive touch-point, and Genesis sees this as an advantage. “All of our designers are avid motorsport fans, and they all rejoice at the opportunity to work on the Gran Turismo projects. It’s a great motivator,” said the company spokesperson. “Ultimately, the collaboration with Gran Turismo provides inspiration for our design team to stretch the bandwidth of the brand and explore racing themes, which they are more than happy to do.”

Genesis stresses the concept of Son Nim (“honored guest”) in all its interactions with owners. This extends to the sim racers as well. I caught up with Genesis team driver Dean Heldt at the Montreal event, representing the team in the first live Manufacturers Cup race of the year. Heldt has been with the team for three seasons now, and found additional support since moving from a rival manufacturer. “When I went to Genesis, they reached out so much more, they’re so supportive. Every time we show up for the World Finals we get new merchandise, and they’re always there to support us,” explains the Nevada native. “My teammates as well, I’m very indebted to them, and I think we’re a great team. When you’ve got a winning combination you try to stick with it as long as possible.

I ask Heldt how he sees the Gran Turismo series influencing the next generation of automotive enthusiasts. He calls it “fascinating,” noting that 2017’s Gran Turismo Sport was his first title, bought to race online with a good friend. He found the camaraderie and the racing experience addictive and, after a few years honing the craft, he’s been a World Series mainstay since 2021. “It’s weird, I’m a veteran now,” the 22-year old laughs, adding that the series has been a steady of source of good, young talent.

“In terms of the cultural impact, GT has done a really good job of putting themselves out there. You know other kinds of sim racing? So iRacing, it’s the pinnacle, it’s the peak, but this offers a much more casual—I don’t want to say casual, nobody here is casual, everyone here is really, really good—the point of entry is so much easier, and it’s so much more user-friendly, and I think it definitely places itself well for a younger audience. Culturally they do very good things.”

That balance between realism and approachability is what has propelled the Gran Turismo series to sell over 90 million copies across the globe. With that sort of audience built-in, it’s little wonder Genesis chose GT to be its first and—at time of writing, only—video game appearance.

Heldt and I discuss how he approaches setting some of the quickest times in GT7, right before he kicks off the qualifying at Brazil’s Interlagos circuit. “Mostly I’m a feel guy. I don’t like to dwell over data, like looking at where people are braking, how much throttle they’re using,” explains Heldt. “I kinda just go by ear—there are situations where that definitely works to my detriment, but there are situations where my relative ignorance actually helps me out. It’s a nice mix of both.”

It’s the advancements in simulation that make this approach possible—and unlock a new avenue for Genesis to court would-be buyers. “Our design team works very closely with Gran Turismo developers to maintain authenticity,” says Genesis, and things like modern force feedback wheels and the availability of the PSVR2 headset puts players behind the wheel in a very convincing way. “The designers provide all of the data to the development team, which uses real world physics to convincingly replicate aerodynamic forces, engine performance and traction,” explains the Genesis spokesperson, “which determines how the car performs and reacts on each of the racetracks.”

Should Genesis see on-track success when its LMDh program is in full swing, no doubt we’ll see it touting the successes in advertising or making overt references with each new Magma high-performance model roll-out. Just remember that the young brand embraced a modern approach to racing first.

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