Words: Andy Lloyd
Images Bernice Bradley
Reigning Student Motorsport Competition title holders Boston College Racing (BCR) have announced that Alex Foden will join Andrew Dyer in a two-car assault on the 2026 crown. With Stuart Bliss, who secured the title for BCR at Silverstone in October, taking a year out of motorsport, an opportunity to drive alongside Andrew Dyer meant that an established relationship with Alex Foden could evolve into an invitation to drive for the Lincolnshire-based squad.
Foden has competed in CityCar Cup racing since 2023, completed his first full season in 2024 and went on to finish on the overall podium on three occasions last year, culminating in a fifth-place finish in the 2025 Championship standings.
Team Principal Lee Crisp and his staff and students are now working on preparing a new Gen I Toyota Aygo for Andrew Dyer and have rebuilt Alex Foden’s Citroën C1 in readiness for the new season which kicks off at Brands Hatch in April.
A Proven Partnership: Foden and Dyer Reunited
“When we first started in Student Motorsport in 2023, we established a good relationship with Alex,” explained Lee Crisp. “Because of his closeness with the team and being a driving partner of Andrew Dyer (Foden and Dyer competed together in selected rounds of the Fun Cup Endurance Championship in 2025), there were always conversations that if there was an opportunity with the team, he’d like to be considered.”
“When Stuart decided to take a year off, I contacted Alex, had a chat and he took the opportunity there and then. I think we’ve got a great driver who can produce some good results. He could have won at least one race at Croft last year. He was extremely quick there!”
Defending the Crown: BCR’s Winning Formula
Boston College Racing, who are entering their third full season of the Student Motorsport Competition after a partial season in 2023 led to full season commitments for the past two years, dominated the world’s premier series providing real-world trackside industry experience for the next generation of motorsport professionals. Between them over the course of the 2025 season, Stuart Bliss and Andrew Dyer stood on the SMo podium on 26 occasions, including 14 class wins and 5 overall BRSCC Nankang Tyre CityCar Cup Championship victories.
“To succeed and win the title after a very short period of time, considering that Boston College had not competed in any form of motorsport before, went down extremely well with the staff and students,” reflected Lee Crisp.
“Our recently appointed principal Lynette Leith is all for motorsport and she is delighted at where we currently stand as reigning title holders going into this season. She is fully supporting and backing us with the BCR programme so it fits really nicely for us.”
Building the Future: Racing in the Curriculum
Boston College has been carefully planning how to integrate students into their racing programme, an initiative that is paying off as the new season approaches.
“We brought some of our then-Level 1s to Silverstone for the final round last year,” explained Lee. “They have now moved up to Level 2 and have seen how the BCR side comes together at a real race event. We’re now involving Level 2s within the initial builds and our Level 3s are actually building the cars.
“We’ve got a really good structure in how we’ve built racing into the curriculum and we think that secures our drive towards more success in 2026.”
Strategy for 2026: Reliability and Precision
Despite consistent on-track success in 2025, Lee is taking nothing for granted as he prepares the team for the new season.
“From what I’ve read and been told, it’s going to be another competitive season and probably one of the most competitive seasons we’ve seen in the Student Motorsport Competition,” he said. “Our main focuses have got to be reliability, competitiveness and making sure we’re fully prepared for each race weekend.
“Testing is going to be critical as it always is and, for us, the key is getting the setup right. That was proven in 2025 and went a long way in supporting our overall Competition win. We’ve got a good structure within the team and we hope we can turn that into some positive results and hopefully retain what we’ve already achieved.”
The 2026 Student Motorsport Competition, part of the BRSCC Nankang Tyre CityCar Cup Championship, gets underway at Brands Hatch on April 11th–12th.