Along with engineers currently or formerly working in Formula 1 and many other speakers, around 200 students from all over the world attended the Formula Student Symposium held at Széchenyi István University over the weekend. Over the three days, teams were inspired to design and build their new single-seater racing car.

In the Formula Student series of university motorsport competitions, hundreds of teams from around the world are working to achieve the best results in the development of their single-seater racing car together with the associated engineering design and project management. An important event of the "movement" is the Formula Student Symposium, initiated by Széchenyi István University and organised for the eighth time between 25 and 27 November.

At the opening ceremony of the event, Dr Barna Hanula, Dean of the Audi Hungaria Faculty of Automotive Engineering at Széchenyi István University, emphasized the role of the institution in the realization of the event.

"The Formula Student racing season actually runs from January to August, with a period in the annual schedule from September to December when the world of racing teams is quieter. We wanted to fill that gap with this valuable professional meeting, which I think is a great opportunity for development and building relationships for all of us,” he said.

"Students just need to be given space, facilities, sponsors and to let them get on with it. They are at least one step ahead of classical education," said Dr Hanula. (Photo: Csaba József Májer)

Representing Audi Hungaria Ltd. at the opening ceremony, Dr Dániel Feszty – head of Department of Whole Vehicle Engineering at the Audi Hungaria Faculty of Automotive Engineering at Széchenyi István University, Győr - also welcomed participants. He stressed that the company has been supporting the Formula Student community for a long time.

"Why? We have three reasons: the growing need for engineers in the company's development department, Formula Student’s great training powerhouse for the next generation and our shared passion for motorsport," he answered immediately.

According to Dr Dániel Feszty, the Arrabona Racing Team and SZEngine student talent workshops are raising a new generation of well-trained engineers on whom Audi Hungaria Ltd. relies heavily (Photo: József Csaba Májer)

The two-day symposium kicked off with a presentation by Owen Carless, who gave an insight into the future of Formula 1. The professional from world champion title collector Red Bull, who won the Constructors' World Championship in 2022 and the individual world title with Max Verstappen, concluded that the future of the racing circuit can be planned by taking into account four fundamental criteria: sport, technology, finance and sustainability.

To sum up Owen Carless' presentation - the development trends already visible today point in the direction of safety, sustainability and marketability. 

Among other things, Owen Carless mentioned that sustainability is not only about the energy efficiency of the cars, but also about the optimization of the team's travel and the reusability of individual spare parts. (Photo: Csaba József Májer) 

Over the course of the weekend, students attending the event were treated to a series of interesting presentations on topics ranging from the secrets of driver training to the decarbonisation of motorsport. As can be seen, the organisers invited experts not only from Formula Student but also from Formula 1, which shows the interconnection between the two fields. With just a little exaggeration it can be said that Formula Student is the forerunner of Formula 1 - or something very similar. In this spirit, in addition to international experts, many well-known figures from Hungarian motorsport, such as television commentator Gábor Wéber, Sándor Kling and Zsolt Jánvári, came to Győr - some as guests, some as speakers. Our portal asked Andor Hegedűs, Red Bull's design engineer, for his views on the symposium.

"I am impressed by the professionalism of the technologies and workflows used by the students. This event brings the most talented young people together with the cream of motorsport, which can partly motivate the students and partly even help them to find their way into the world of Formula 1," said the Austrian racing team's representative, who spoke to the audience about the technologies and organisational processes behind the super-fast wheel change that has become the hallmark of the team.

As Red Bull's development engineer, Andor Hegedűs has played a major role in the team's efforts to minimise the time a car spends in the pit lane (Photo: Csaba József Májer)

The programme also included a session in which Formula Student teams shared their experiences. The unique Arrabona Racing Team - SZEngine collaboration was discussed, which makes ART the only team in Hungary not to use a licensed racing engine, but a custom-designed power unit developed by students.

Members of the Stuttgart-based GreenTeam, which builds electric-powered cars, spoke to the audience about their record-breaking powertrain, which has been racking up victory after victory. Two former students of the team, Luis Laufenberg and Jakob Eifert, came with great enthusiasm to join the programme at Széchenyi István University.

"We thank the organisers for inviting us, we were happy to come. We have already said goodbye to the world of Formula Student, but we are still attracted by this community, as we feel at home both at the races and here at the symposium. The speakers are very well chosen and everyone can learn something useful. But of course it is also a great networking event, and we wouldn't have wanted to miss it," was their consensus.

The enthusiasm of the participants was reflected in the fact that the Finnish FS Team Tallinn arrived in Győr after a 22-hour drive. A Canadian student also took part in the event, having interrupted his Erasmus studies in Milan for the sake of the trip to Győr (Photo: Csaba József Májer)

The prestigious event was also attended by television commentator Gábor Wéber (left) (Photo: Csaba József Májer)

A group of speakers and organisers on the stage of the Formula Student Symposium (Photo: Csaba József Májer)