Thrustmaster has become an official partner of the Gran Turismo World Series, extending one of the longest-running hardware relationships in the Gran Turismo ecosystem. The partnership was announced during Round 3 of the 2026 World Series in Singapore on October 3, alongside the reveal of the new T-GT III racing wheel for PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4.
The agreement brings Thrustmaster directly into Gran Turismo’s flagship international esports championship, where the world’s leading GT7 competitors race across the Nations Cup and Manufacturers Cup.
It also strengthens an increasingly competitive hardware environment around Gran Turismo, with Fanatec, MOZA Racing and Thrustmaster now all holding relationships with Polyphony Digital and the Gran Turismo World Series.
Thrustmaster joins the Gran Turismo World Series
The partnership was revealed during the Gran Turismo World Series 2026 Round 3 in Singapore, held at the Sands Theatre at Marina Bay Sands. Gran Turismo creator Kazunori Yamauchi highlighted the long-standing relationship between the two companies, noting that Thrustmaster has continued developing hardware intended to reproduce the sensations Polyphony Digital wants players to experience through Gran Turismo.
Thrustmaster and Gran Turismo have worked together across several generations of PlayStation hardware. Their collaboration has produced products ranging from the T300RS GT Edition to the original T-GT, T-GT II and, now, the Direct Drive-based T-GT III.
The original T-GT was particularly significant because it was developed specifically around Gran Turismo Sport, including feedback technology designed to communicate additional vehicle information through the steering system. The new partnership continues that approach as both companies move into the current Direct Drive generation.
A 16-year relationship with Gran Turismo
Thrustmaster says its work with Gran Turismo now spans approximately 16 years. Over that period, the collaboration has evolved from officially licensed wheels into hardware developed directly alongside Polyphony Digital.
Gilles Raulet, Director of Development and Licensing at Thrustmaster, said meeting Gran Turismo’s standards has consistently pushed the company’s development teams towards unusual technical challenges.
That collaboration can already be seen in the current GT Wheel Add-On. Thrustmaster describes the 28 cm leather wheel as being designed together with Polyphony Digital, with four rotary encoders and controls specifically intended for Gran Turismo.
The relationship now goes beyond licensed consumer hardware by giving Thrustmaster an official presence within the World Series itself.
Thrustmaster joins MOZA in the 2026 GT World Series
Thrustmaster is not the only sim racing manufacturer to expand its relationship with Gran Turismo during 2026.
In July, Polyphony Digital announced MOZA Racing as an official peripheral partner of the Gran Turismo World Series. That agreement also includes the development of Gran Turismo-branded steering hardware with native Gran Turismo 7 support.
MOZA’s partnership began with Round 2 of the championship in Tokyo, while Thrustmaster’s announcement arrives at Round 3 in Singapore.
The result is an unusually broad group of competing sim racing hardware manufacturers operating around the same esports championship.
Fanatec remains an important part of Gran Turismo esports
Thrustmaster becoming an official partner should not automatically be interpreted as Fanatec being replaced.
Polyphony Digital named Fanatec the Official Steering Wheel Partner of the Gran Turismo World Series in 2023. Fanatec hardware has subsequently been used at World Series live events to provide standardized racing equipment for competitors.
No announcement accompanying the Thrustmaster partnership states that this arrangement has ended. The different agreements can therefore coexist, with hardware manufacturers holding different partnership or licensing roles within the wider Gran Turismo ecosystem.
This distinction became particularly relevant when MOZA joined the World Series earlier in 2026. MOZA was announced as an official peripheral partner while Fanatec continued its existing role within the competition.
The partnership arrives with the new T-GT III
Thrustmaster used the Singapore announcement to reveal the T-GT III, its latest officially licensed Gran Turismo racing system.
The new model replaces the belt-driven architecture of the T-GT II with Thrustmaster’s Direct Axial Drive technology. It produces 5 Nm of constant torque, supports short-duration torque overshoot and adds high-frequency haptic effects designed for Gran Turismo 7.
The complete bundle also includes a Gran Turismo steering wheel and load cell pedals, making it a substantially different package from the previous T-GT generation.
The T-GT III launches on December 3 for €699.99 in Europe, $749.99 in the United States and £649.99 in the United Kingdom.
You can find the full specifications in our Thrustmaster T-GT III coverage.
More competition for Gran Turismo hardware
The partnership highlights how quickly the PlayStation sim racing hardware market is changing. Gran Turismo players previously had a relatively limited selection of officially licensed Direct Drive ecosystems compared with PC users, but that situation is expanding rapidly.
Fanatec already provides multiple PlayStation-compatible Direct Drive systems, Thrustmaster has now moved its flagship Gran Turismo product to Direct Axial Drive, and MOZA is developing officially licensed PlayStation hardware with native GT7 support.
For Polyphony Digital, working with several hardware manufacturers also creates more opportunities to develop steering and feedback technologies specifically around Gran Turismo rather than relying exclusively on generic peripheral support. For Thrustmaster, the agreement brings the company back into a highly visible position around competitive Gran Turismo just as its hardware lineup moves further towards Direct Drive.
Gran Turismo World Series continues in December
The 2026 Gran Turismo World Series consists of live rounds in Milan, Tokyo and Singapore before the World Finals in Tokyo on December 5 and 6.
The championship combines the Nations Cup, where drivers represent their countries or territories, with the Manufacturers Cup, where competitors represent automotive brands using Gran Turismo’s Gr.3 machinery.
Thrustmaster’s new partnership therefore begins just before the championship’s biggest event of the year, giving the company an official presence heading into the World Finals.
With Fanatec, MOZA and now Thrustmaster all involved with the Gran Turismo ecosystem, the partnership also reinforces how important Gran Turismo 7 and PlayStation have become to the current sim racing hardware market.
See you on the track!
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