Jayhawk Motorsports’ Electric Vehicle Rebuild Produces One of the Program’s Best Finishes
Jayhawk Motorsports (JMS) is coming off one of its best competitive years in over a decade. They finished 18th out of more than 100 entrants at the Formula Society of Automotive Engineers (FSAE) finals at Michigan International Speedway in May of 2026.
After transitioning to a fully electric vehicle (EV) in the past two years, the program has completely rebuilt to meet the new challenges.
“I always give credit to the ’25 team,” said Christian Cox, the 2026 Team Director. “We wouldn’t have accomplished what we did and wouldn’t be here today because they never gave up.”
Facing years of disappointing results, there was pressure on the JMS team to step it up or look at a potential program shutdown. According to Cox, there were conversations about losing the University support and funding if the lack of success continued.
An impressive showing at Michigan ensured that the lifeline is still connected for the 2027 team, where new director Megan Winslow has taken the hand-off in stride and with confidence.
“We see how hard they worked with so few people and still placed 18th,” Winslow said. “All we have to do is just keep going. I’m shooting for top 5. I think it’s very doable.”
The team has the 2026 EV car at their disposal to test and learn from, as they develop and build the car that they’ll take to the FSAE competition at the end of the year. The team will continue to compete throughout the school year at Sports Car Club of America and other licensed FSAE events. The next event for the team is Formula Wheat in Manhattan, Kansas on Oct. 24, 2026.
Anyone who is interested in the team or volunteering to help, JMS accepts all who wish to assist in any capacity. You can also drop in to tour the shop in Learned Hall, Room 1109.
