There is an old saying that timing is everything, and so it proved in the final round as "Pentagon" grew by 9% to leapfrog "Sparks" (7% growth), and become the University of Manchester Enginuity 2026 Champions with a very impressive finishing score of 1,902 pts, but it was incredibly close with just 2 points separating the teams in the closest finish ever in a UOM Competition. Ultimately their success owed much to them demonstrating one of the guiding principles in running a successful business, consistency, having led the competition for 4 of the 5 rounds.

The Final Round saw 15 of the 16 teams post positive growth figures, demonstrating the overall quality amongst the teams, and none more so than "Momentum" with a stunning 22% improvement that enabled them to climb into mid table. The best positional gain came from "Horizon", a 5 place rise after 17% growth that enabled them to finish 3rd, just 2 points ahead of "Nexus" in 4th.

In the final analysis all of the teams finished with stronger, more sustainable companies than when they took over in period 5, a testament to the skill and application shown by the management teams in what was a roller coaster of a journey through 5 simulated quarters of management.