First Citizens to sponsor BMF R5 Rally Championship

The 2022 R5 Rally Championship, presented by First Citizens, announced today (March 21) by the Barbados Motoring Federation (BMF), is the island’s first national motor sport championship. With a title sponsor new to motor sport, a calendar of events contested across a range of disciplines on a level playing field, and a parallel e-sports component to bring the digital and real motor sport worlds closer, the Federation believes it will act as a catalyst to further expand the sport in the island.

  At the media launch at Bushy Park, St Philip, held in the workshops of Pro Auto Works, the preparation company responsible for running a number of the eligible cars, BMF Vice-President David Williams, who is also the R5 Rally Championship Manager, said: “This is the first National Championship in motor sport since the days when there was only one club, more than 40 years ago, and an important way to raise our game to help recover from the coronavirus pandemic and further unite our clubs. And it is even better news that we are welcoming a first-time sponsor to our sport.”
  The CEO of First Citizens, Cheryl-Ann La Roche, who attended the launch with colleagues, said: “Motor sports in Barbados is a community event that transcends social class, age and religion bringing fascination, thrill, and the technical dexterity of drivers, that’s always a treat to watch. When the opportunity arose to partner with the R5 Rally Championship at the highest level of title sponsor, we did not hesitate.”
  From Bahrain, where he was attending the first FIA World Motor Sports Council meeting during the Bahrain GP weekend, BMF President Senator Andrew Mallalieu added: “The BMF’s target is to develop it from a National to a Regional Championship in three years, to include the other rallying islands of Guadeloupe, Jamaica, Martinique and Trinidad & Tobago, and ultimately to become an FIA Zone Championship, like Asia Pacific or NACAM. We also hope that it will create a platform for a Barbadian to progress to compete in the World Rally Championship.”
  Williams added: “Looking ahead, with the R5/Rally2 formula stable globally, the new championship allows for long-term investment from drivers, teams and sponsors. It is also among the first in the region to use FIA Impact Data Recorders (IDR), allowing data from grass roots categories to be uploaded to assist the FIA Safety Department in its worldwide research into serious accidents.
  The Championship will be contested across a range of disciplines - special stage rallies, speed events, drag racing and autocross – with the organisation of each event in the hands of the BMF’s Member Clubs. The calendar has been structured to limit travel for overseas competitors, with four weekends hosting one event each day, then the usual consecutive weekends of King of the Hill and Sol Rally Barbados, which many drivers already attend, with a Race Of Champions-style event to round off the season. At year-end, the winner will collect a $5,000 prize to donate to the Barbados charity he nominated on registration for the championship.
  It will be administered by the BMF, which has devised the Sporting Regulations, with Adrian Linton as Technical Delegate and Warren Gollop as Chairman of the Stewards to deal specifically with R5 Rally Championship matters. The BMF has appointed Be Media Group Inc as Promoter, both Be Media Director James Skinner and Championship Commercial Director Jeremy Foster also speaking at today’s launch. The e-sports element will be managed by Caribbean Sim Motorsport, which became affiliated to the BMF last year, who was represented at the launch by Chairman Robert Simmons.
  Williams added: “The e-Sports element of the championship provides an opportunity for the Digital and Real World to meet. Only a few days ago, the island’s own FIA Formula 3 driver Zane Maloney said that he always goes on the SIM ahead of races, even at circuits he is familiar with, so the link is there. There is no doubt that digital can be a feeder for real-world motor sport, so we can help develop more young talent.”
  Stuart Maloney, who won both the Barbados Rally Club (BRC) and Motoring Club Barbados Inc (MCBI) championship titles in a Skoda Fabia Rally2 evo last year, said: “I’m really looking forward to getting back into some REAL rallying. Now all the top guys have decided that R5 is the way to go, we are in for an epic battle to see who’s the best in the same machinery. We have an awesome championship that will challenge us all in many different formats. I hope that I can continue my form from last year, but I do know there will be some foreign guys that have different ideas.”

For media information only. No regulatory value.

For further information:
please contact BMF Vice-President, David Williams - e-mail: vicepresident@bmf-fia.com
web site: https://bmf-fia.com/