Cardiff takes Formula Student crown in first ever UK win

Following four days of intense competition at Silverstone, Cardiff Racing emerged with a total score of 855.6, just edging out the University of Birmingham on 837.5 points. Sweden’s Karlstad University completed the podium, some distance back on 732.9 points. In total, more than 2,000 students from 24 countries took part in the event, which is run by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE).

“It’s great to see a UK team doing well and to win the overall competition,” said Andrew Deakin, chairman of Formula Student.

“Cardiff Racing’s entry was fantastic, their car was innovative and that showed with their performance on the track. It has been a superb competition overall, with the rain holding off for the endurance event – all teams seemed to really enjoy themselves.”

Cardiff Racing beat off competition from almost 100 other teams, with the main Class 1 event seeing 19 electric vehicles and 73 combustion engine vehicles (including Cardiff’s) lining up. Cars are judged on numerous criteria, including speed, acceleration, handling and endurance, while the teams themselves are evaluated on their design, costing and business presentation skills.

“We could never have dreamt of this in a million years,” said Luca Di Marino and Alex Goff, Cardiff Racing’s team leaders. “In all the years of competing at Formula Student, Cardiff have never been victorious so all credit must go to the team for a great effort – it’s beyond our wildest dreams.”

“The other teams were great and we just want to thank the university as well as our families and friends for their support. We couldn’t have done it without them!”