From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Motorsport race track in St. Philip, Barbados
Bushy Park Circuit
is a
motorsport
race track
in the parish of
St. Philip
,
Barbados
. The circuit features a 2.012 km (1.250 mi)
FIA Grade 4
course and a 1.2 km (0.75 mi) CIK Grade 1 course.
History
[
edit
]
The original race track was built in 1971 by sugar cane plantation workers as a 1.3 km (0.81 mi) circuit. The circuit became a hub for racing in the
Caribbean
over the next three decades, however had fallen into disrepair by the mid-2000s. Local rally driver Ralph Williams coerced the
FIA
and Apex Circuit Design into supporting the circuit's redevelopment, a cause that was boosted by the large crowds witnessed at the local touring car event which delegates chose to attend. Reconstruction began in 2013 on what was grandly proposed as the central hub for racing in the Caribbean.
[1]
The track was refurbished and reopened in 2014 with the inaugural event being the
Top Gear
Festival featuring the
Global RallyCross Championship
. Later in the same year it hosted the
2014 Race of Champions
.
[2]
The
Global RallyCross Championship
returned in 2015 for a double-header event. Bushy Park has also since been used as a stage for Rally Barbados. Initially awarded a Grade Three license, a 2016 legal dispute that rendered the track unusable for 18 months would see the FIA downgrade the circuit to a Grade Four licence.
The circuit is owned by property developer Mark Maloney, uncle of
Formula 2
driver
Zane Maloney
.
[3]
References
[
edit
]
External links
[
edit
]