Monash Motorsport takes over Europe

The Monash Motorsport team recently returned from a successful bout of overseas student motorsport competitions, coming third on the UK circuit and fourth on the German.

Monash Motorsport’s Sponsorship and Business Manager, Natalie Ajay, said the team learnt a great deal while competing overseas at the Formula Student UK (FSUK) and Formula Student Germany (FSG) competitions.

“We were able to achieve goals, solve problems, meet industry professionals and create amazing friendships,” Ms Ajay said.

“Even though it was great for the team to be able to stand on the podium and accept awards for their hard work and dedication, it was clear the group’s greatest achievement was the knowledge they gained through their experiences.”

The team departed Australia earlier this year for Aachen, Germany, where they were hosted by the EcurieAix Formula Student team from RWTH Aachen University.

The Monash team spent many weeks developing their M11 race car in Aachen, which paid off at the FSUK competition, held at Silverstone Raceway.

The team performed well in all aspects of the competition, being awarded the Engineering Excellence Award from Shell, and also the Simulation Award from Jaguar Land Rover for outstanding engineering ability and simulator development.

The team achieved third place in the overall ranking at the FSUK, beating more than 95 other international teams in the world-class event.

Two weeks later, they set off for Hockenheim, where they competed at the FSG competition.

Confronted with tough competition from more than 70 international racing teams, Monash Motorsport performed spectacularly, finishing a very close fourth in what was one of the closest fought Formula Student (FS) competitions in recent years.

“The team also ranked third in the Design event, which was a huge honour, establishing their race car as one of the best designed FS vehicles in the world,” Ms Ajay said.

The team returned home with countless new skills and the experience of being able to apply their engineering abilities in a fast-paced, real world environment.

“The most important thing the team members came back with was the ability to challenge themselves, go outside their comfort zones, and at the end of the day, become the best engineers they can be,” Ms Ajay said.