left: BCIC RB25 Event Director Neil Barnard, Branch Manager BCIC Barbados Alexandra Leacock, General Manager, Marketing BCIC Lori-Ann Glasgow, Claire Jordan, CEO of First Citizens Bank Barbados, Sports Manager BTMI Kamal Springer
BCIC Rally Barbados 2025 is on course to break all previous records in local and regional rallying, with 126 crews on the provisional entry list published at a Media Briefing in the Open-Air Suites at Bushy Park Barbados on Thursday (May 8). Event Director Neil Barnard said: “Rallying in Barbados experienced real growth during 2024, but the overseas response to our event his year has been astonishing.”
The 35th edition of the Barbados Rally Club’s (BRC) premier event, BCIC RB25 will be fought out over 22 special stages from Friday to Sunday, May 30-June 1. The Auto & Rally Show and First Citizens King of the Hill (KotH), the shakedown event to establish the seeding for RB25, will be staged the previous weekend (May 24/25).
From an original 147 entries posted on-line since October, the 126 confirmed crews, up from the 2012 record of 108, encompasses a number of other records: 51 overseas crews from 13 countries (previous highest – 44 in 2015), 99 individual overseas participants (88, 2015), 75 local crews (64 started last year) and 39 cars in the 4wd classes (27, 2015), while 24 female competitors equals the 2024 figure.
Barnard said: “After starting a record 100 cars last year, we were confident that the event was well on its way to recovering from the effects of the pandemic. Rallying in Barbados experienced real growth during 2024, to see an entry of 75 cars is unheard of, but the overseas response to our event this year has been astonishing.
“I am particularly pleased to see such a big increase in crews from Ireland, 13 cars is a record number for one event, and newcomers from Scotland, too. In keeping with tradition in our Motorsport Island, most have been encouraged to travel by friends who have been here before, so our word of mouth reputation continues to be strong.”
Joined at Thursday’s top table by representatives of BCIC, First Citizens and the BTMI, Barnard said: “We are so pleased to be joined again by our title sponsors BCIC, who came on board last year and will hopefully be with us for many years to come. We thank First Citizens for sponsoring King of The Hill for the fourth time and I must mention Bushy Park Barbados, where we are sitting now, for their commitment to this event and offer special thanks again to Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc.”
A further vote of confidence in the strength of island motorsport comes from Inchcape Barbados, Megapower and Platinum Motors, new event partners for 2025. Under its electric vehicle brand Riddara, Megapower will sponsor Friday’s floodlit stages at Bushy Park, also Saturday’s Padmore stage, while Inchcape will sponsor the popular Kendal stage in St John on Saturday. Inchcape will also supply safety vehicles for the official convoy that runs directly ahead of Car 0, while the island’s authorised Honda dealer Platinum Motors will supply two vehicles for the Stage Setup Safety Team.
BCIC RB25 will open with two floodlit SuperSpecials at Bushy Park on Friday night (May 30), either side of a run through nearby Malvern. Saturday’s three loops of three high-speed venues in the south-east of the island will be followed by nine stages on three more technical stages in the north on Sunday, with the Final Stage (not included in the results) and Rally Finish at the Vaucluse Raceway in St Thomas.
While all the venues are familiar, fans are celebrating the return of Hangman’s Hill after six years, resurfaced by the Ministry of Transport & Works last November. It is a key element of the Content to Hopewell stage being used for KotH, also for three stages on the Sunday of BCIC RB25, with the Rally Experience (formerly VIP) and a large spectator area also returning to the popular ‘Vaucluse 90’ for the first time since 2014.
Lori-Ann Glasgow, General Manager, Marketing BCIC, said: “Our inaugural partnership marked the beginning of an exciting journey, one built on shared values of precision, excellence, and performance. Our renewed partnership reaffirms BCIC’s commitment to challenging convention, enhancing customer experiences, and building lasting trust.”
Claire Jordan, CEO of First Citizens Bank Barbados, said: “Our sponsorship is part of a larger commitment to the communities we serve. King of the Hill brings people together, fuels local pride, and inspires bold ambition and I am looking forward to the return to Vaucluse to see what this iconic location can bring.”
For the BTMI, Sports Manager Kamal Springer added: “Rally Club does an outstanding job of promoting this event and BTMI is excited to once again be a partner. The event broke records last year to attract over 500 people and are set to go further to surpass 600 visitors this year We are working with our international travel agents and operators to create travel packages for 2026 to see how close we can get to 1,000 next year.”
Barnard added: “Thanks in advance to the residents and travelling public for their patience and understanding, and the spectators, competitors and visitors – local, regional or international – who are such a large part of making this event what it is.”