Formula 1 comes to Monash University

Engineering students were given a glimpse of what it takes to develop and maintain a Formula 1 car when key members of the Red Bull Racing team visited Monash University.

Ahead of the weekend’s Grand Prix at Albert Park, Chief Engineer – Car Engineering at Red Bull Racing, Paul Monaghan and Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo provided the students, including members of the university’s Motorsport team, with insights into the behind-the-scenes processes that keep the top F1 cars on the track.
Monash Motorsport Supervisor Dr Scott Wordley said the visit was a perfect opportunity for students interested in a career in motor racing to gain a glimpse into the roles of engineers in the world of Grand Prix racing.
“The students are really enthusiastic about their involvement in Formula Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) and the visit gave them a better understanding of what is required of the engineers who work within Formula One,” Dr Wordley said.
“The Monash Motorsport team gives our students the opportunity to develop the skills they will need to make an impact at the highest levels of world motorsport.  Our graduates are already well represented in the ranks of F1, Le Mans Prototype (LMP) and the local V8 touring car series.”
During the visit Mr Monaghan launched the Infiniti Performance Engineering Academy program which will see three engineering graduates selected from universities around the world undertake a 12-month internship with the Red Bull Racing team.
The Monash Motorsport team also had the opportunity to show off their latest car—the M13 which the students are currently preparing to race at Silverstone in the UK and the Hockenheimring in Germany later this year.
Dr Wordley said Monash University already had strong connections with Infiniti Red Bull Racing. Sam Lister, who completed his Monash engineering degree in 2009, is a communications engineer with the team.
“With the help of the Infiniti Performance Engineering Academy program, we hope to make these opportunities available to more of our graduates,” Dr Wordley said.

Monash Motorsport

Monash Motorsport is a student run racing team that represents Monash University locally and internationally in the Formula SAE competition. Each year the team, comprising of students mainly from the Engineering, Information Technology and Business and Economics faculties, designs, builds and races a formula style race car against other teams from around the world. The Monash team is currently ranked second in the world, out of more than 500 universities.
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