Stardust Racers 📖 Wikipedia

Stardust Racers
Universal Epic Universe
Park section	Celestial Park
Coordinates	28°26′29″N 81°26′48″W / 28.441446°N 81.446672°W / 28.441446; -81.446672
Status	Operating
Opening date	May 22, 2025
General statistics
Type	Steel – Racing – Launched
Manufacturer	Mack Rides
Designer	Universal Creative
Model	Dueling Launch Coaster
Lift/launch system	LSM launch
	Pulsar	Photon
Height	133 ft (40.5 m)	133 ft (40.5 m)
Length	5,000 ft (1,524.0 m)	5,000 ft (1,524.0 m)
Speed	62 mph (99.8 km/h)	62 mph (99.8 km/h)
Inversions	1	1
Height restriction	48 in (122 cm)
Trains	5 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows for a total of 20 riders per train.
Official website	Stardust Racers
Universal Express available
Stardust Racers at RCDB Pictures of Stardust Racers at RCDB

Stardust Racers is a steel dual-tracked launched roller coaster at Universal Epic Universe in Orlando, Florida. Universal Orlando first announced the new theme park in August 2019 before officially unveiling Stardust Racers and its associated Celestial Park area in January 2024.^[1][2]

Stardust Racers was manufactured by Mack Rides and includes two 5,000-foot (1,500 m) tracks, collectively making it one of the largest steel coasters in the United States.^[3][4] It officially opened on May 22, 2025, along with the rest of the theme park.

Universal Epic Universe was first announced on August 1, 2019, as a new third gate theme park that would double Universal Orlando's footprint.^[5][6] No attractions or details were divulged at the time, although a large dueling coaster was predominantly visible in concept artwork. German roller coaster manufacturer Mack Rides subsequently patented a new ride inversion design in the fall, where twin tracks twisted over each other while rising and falling from a peak.^[7] This would later become referred to as the Celestial Spin.^[8]

Epic Universe was originally scheduled to open in 2023, but parent company Comcast announced in April 2020 that construction would be delayed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.^[9] Europa Park owner Roland Mack announced in September that Universal had cancelled his company's order for "the largest roller coaster in the world", which was valued at well over 20 million euros and would not be delivered in the foreseeable future.^[4] Construction on Epic Universe resumed in March 2021 and the following January, Roland confirmed that Universal had renewed the contract as a result, which had been amended to include a second coaster project.^[10][11]

Track and supports for the attraction began arriving in August 2022.^[12] Construction oversaw groundwork and coaster installation taking place concurrently, with each section being completed in phases. The first pieces were fitted in November 2022 with the initial launch tracks and maintenance bays, with the layout being physically completed in June 2023.^[13][14] The highlight Celestial Spin element was topped off near the end of May.^[15]

Universal City Studios LLC submitted a trademark application for "Starfall Racers" to the United States Patent and Trademark Office on March 7, 2023.^[16] On January 30, 2024, Universal Orlando formally shared information on Epic Universe and its central Celestial Park precinct.^[17] Starfall Racers was also officially announced at this time, with a wide variety of concept artwork and animation released to the public.^[3][18] The coaster was finished in time and opened with the park on May 22, 2025.^[19][20] In 2024, the name was challenged by the Starfall Education Foundation for "brand misappropriation toward children" and in late May 2024, the roller coaster was renamed to "Stardust Racers", which was a backup trademark name.^[21]

After dispatch, each train makes a 180-degree turn inward. Photon (Yellow) turns right, while Pulsar (Green) turns left to go underneath the station and into the first launch. After exiting the launch, the train ascends a top hat element, then traverses a downwards turn and a bunny hill before diving back down in a sharp turn at a near miss element. The trains rise back up and proceed to the second launch, reaching a top speed of 62 miles per hour (100 km/h). Trains then enter the ride's Celestial Spin, a 133-foot-tall (41 m) inversion where the Pulsar side traverses an upwards zero-g roll while the Photon side traverses a downwards barrel roll. The trains then proceed to an overbanked turn to the right where the ride photo is taken, then enter a series of turns and hills before reaching the final brake run leading to the station.

The ride's backstory is that the Celestians, residents of Celestial Park, have learned to capture comets from the stars and ride them, which was how they traveled to different worlds before the portal system was invented. They are allowing visitors to race on two of these comets, Pulsar (Green) and Photon (Yellow), to see which is the fastest.

Each side of Stardust Racers stands 133 feet (41 m) tall, covers around 5,000 feet (1,500 m) of track, and reaches a top speed of 62 mph (100 km/h). The aforementioned peak height reaches during the attraction's signature Celestial Spin element, where the tracks invert around each other while rising and falling. The top speed is reached using linear synchronous motor launches on each side. The supports are painted copper, and each side has its own track color, yellow and green.

Stardust Racers runs with up to four trains on each track.^[12] Each train is made up of five cars where riders sit in two rows of two, for a total of twenty passengers. The ride structure does not display any lighting at night, while the trains feature onboard audio and lights, designed to make the illuminated ride vehicles appear as comets in the night sky.^[3] A flux capacitor from the Back to the Future film series is attached to the back of the trains, with backstory materials implying that Dr. Emmett Brown was responsible for making the comets stable enough to race.^[22]

Stardust Racers received the Golden Ticket Award for Best New Roller Coaster in 2025.^[23]

On September 17, 2025, 32-year-old Kevin Rodriguez Zavala died after riding Stardust Racers.^[25] He was found "unresponsive after riding" according to a statement from Universal. The park confirmed as well that Zavala did not fall from the ride. An autopsy report listed the death as an accident and found the official cause of death to be "multiple blunt impact injuries."^[26] The roller coaster was temporarily closed after the incident.^[27] According to Benjamin Crump, the lawyer representing Zavala's family, multiple witnesses and others reportedly injured by the roller coaster have come forward. Crump alleges that the injured individuals suffered similar injuries to Zavala which showed it was not an isolated incident.^[28][29] In December 2025, it was announced that Universal and the Rodriguez Zavala family reached an agreement to resolve the family's lawsuit against Universal.^[30]

On September 26, it was announced that a settlement and a notice of voluntary dismissal with prejudice had been reached with a woman alleging she was injured due to the coaster. The woman's complaint, which was unrelated to the Zavala incident, was filed after Zavala was found unresponsive on the coaster.^[31]

After Stardust Racers was inspected by Universal, Mack Rides, and the state of Florida, the roller coaster was found to be safe and functioned properly. ^[32] The ride was reopened on October 4, 2025.^[33]

• Battlestar Galactica: Human vs. Cylon – a similar style ride at Universal Studios Singapore
• Dragon Challenge – a similar dueling style roller coaster formerly at Universal Islands of Adventure

• Official website