TRAPPES, France — A German taxi driver and a Spanish MBA student will race a Nissan 350Z in a 24-hour endurance race in Dubai. The ride is their prize in a Nissan-sponsored video-game competition that required them to outrace competitors in both the virtual and real worlds.Lars Schlömer, 28, and 23-year-old Lucas Ordoñez beat out more than 25,000 competitors to earn their spots on the Nissan racing team. The eight-month competition began with thousands of Europeans fighting to produce the quickest lap times in Playstation 3's Gran Turismo 5 Prologue. The fastest two entrants from each country then advanced to a final round, which swapped the controller for a steering wheel as 22 finalists competed on Britain's Silverstone racetrack. A panel of judges observed the five-day academy and later selected Schlömer and Ordoñez as the winners. Both men will now complete an intensive four-month driver training course with the Nissan racing team to earn their racing licenses and prepare for the January event.The competition also provides insight into the oft-pondered question: Can a great video gamer be a great racing driver? The folks at the GT Academy believe they've proven that it's possible.'I would now absolutely recommend to people that they get into Playstation before they come to us,' said Steve Deeks, chief director of the GT Academy. 'All these guys arrived at Silverstone knowing about sequential gearboxes, oversteer, understeer, driving lines, et cetera. A keen driver from the streets would not have half the knowledge. And the reaction time and ability to cope with the pressure they have had coming through the gaming part of the competition made them very well equipped from day one.'What this means to you: Your mom was wrong. Video games are not a waste of your time. — Eric Tingwall, Correspondent