The experience of a lifetime awaits five UK F1 in Schools World Finals 2019 teams in Abu Dhabi

Seeing your own design of miniature F1 car race to the finish line in around one second, overcoming nerves to present your work to expert judges, enjoying the special bond of an elite team, making new friends for life, experiencing an awards ceremony on the actual Formula 1 track at Yas Marina Circuit – sounds impossible, but not for this year’s F1 in Schools World Finals supported by ADNOC teams.
 
Five student teams will represent the UK at the event. Evolve UK, a team of three 17 and 18-year-old boys from Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, Faversham and Aflex Hose Centurion Racing, four 16 to 18 year old boys and girls from Rishworth School, Halifax will represent the UK; Avidity Racing, six 15 to 17-year-old boys and girls from Scarborough UTC will represent England. Two teams will represent Wales at this prestigious event, Infinity Racing from St. Johns College, Cardiff, one of the youngest teams to travel to the UAE, is a team of five boys and one girl, aged 13 – 14 and Quantum from Denbigh High School is three girls and one boy, aged 14 – 15.  
 
The F1 in Schools World Finals 2019 supported by ADNOC takes place on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi from 24 – 27 November alongside the Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and will feature 55 teams representing 22 countries competing over four days for the prestigious F1 in Schools World Champions 2019 title.
 
Over 500 students, teachers, parents, sponsors and supporters, will travel from around the world to compete at the highest level of this highly acclaimed global STEM competition, an education programme that inspires and nurtures young talent to realise their ambitions.
 
The multi-faceted STEM competition embraces enterprise, design, engineering, marketing and teamwork. Formula 1 is at the heart of the initiative, with students forming F1 teams in miniature to design, make, test and race an F1 in Schools car, competing regionally and nationally, with the best teams winning a place at the F1in Schools World Finals 2019. The stakes are high too, with City, University of London, UCL Mechanical Engineering and University of Huddersfield scholarships on offer to the World Champions, as well as the prized F1 in Schools World Champions trophy and a VIP experience at the Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

​Evolve UK, say of competing, “As a team we have gained so much from taking part in this STEM competition and we wanted to start projects that encourage more young people to get involved in engineering. We chose our name Evolve to match our ethos of "Evolving a future generation of engineers."
 
Aflex Hose Centurion Racing, comment, “We are particularly looking forward to two things: racing our new car against the best in the world and meeting some of the teams that we have been in touch with through social media. We’re sparky, driven and focussed on our destination.
 
Avidity Racing say, “The opportunity to break barriers and set the standards for next year’s competitors are just two of the values of F1 in Schools. We have all learnt confidence skills and speaking abilities however we have all learnt our own specialist areas as well.
 
Infinity Racing, say of their team, “Our team is multi-cultured, with different and unique team members that all bring their skills forward. On top of this we are a group of enthusiastic, determined and young children that look forward to the great possibilities in our future careers!"
 
Quantum say “We have improved our skill set in STEM  through doing this competition and expanded our knowledge of the real life engineering world and the career paths inside this industry. Our team is unique from other teams because of our new innovative designs and our use of futuristic technology which is a key element to team Quantum. We as a team are looking forward to meeting new teams from all around the world all skilled in STEM.”
 
The competition days of this year’s World Finals will be staged at du Forum on Yas Island, with the Awards Celebration Ceremony rewarding all the team’s efforts at a unique event that will be on the Yas Marina Circuit track at Turn 1, with the students joined by personalities and representatives from the Formula 1 teams, Yas Marina Circuit and title partner, ADNOC.
 
The competition features verbal presentations, portfolio, pit display, marketing and engineering judging sessions, as well as the intense pressure of the 20 metre F1 in Schools track racing, For 25 students, there will be the added challenge of the Unilever Williams Engineering Academy Assessment Centre and the chance to win a coveted place in the Academy, that takes its students exclusively from the F1 in Schools World Finals event each year.
 
A total of 22 awards will be presented at the finale, rewarding the outstanding achievements of the F1 in Schools 2019 World Finals teams, the future Engineers and professionals of the Formula 1 industry.
 
The F1 in Schools World Finals 2019 is held with the support of a host of sponsors including Formula 1, ADNOC, Yas Marina Circuit, Denford, The Institution of Engineering and Technology, Abu Dhabi Motorsport Management, Autodesk, Etihad, FIA Women in Motorsport Commission, UCL Engineering , City, University of London, University of Huddersfield and Abu Dhabi Convention and Exhibition Bureau.  

Team Evolve

Avidity Racing

Quantum

Aflex Hose Centurion Racing Team

Infinity Racing