Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum reveals new Ducati and Suzuki exhibitions

The annual Barber Vintage Festival, which is organised by the Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum, is set to take on a new look in 2026. 

That’s because Ducati and Suzuki will be celebrated in the form of two all-new exhibitions by the museum, which was founded by the late George Barber Jr. 

Barber passed away at the age of 85 in February, with his death marking the end of an era for American motorsport culture.

His museum was founded in 1994, and over the last 21 years, it has regularly staged the annual Barber Vintage Festival. This year’s event will be kickstarted by the two above-mentioned exhibitions, one of which focuses on Ducati turning 100 years of age, while the other is specific to Suzuki’s GSX-R family. 

Ultan Guilfoyle, museum board member and co-curator of “The Art of the Motorcycle,” is in charge of organising the Ducati 100 and GSX-R|40 exhibitions. They will both be unveiled on Wednesday 7 October, and will be located on the third and fifth floors of the museum, which is based at the Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Alabama. 

Speaking about the museum’s new plans, Guilfoyle said: 

“When I first met George Barber, his vision for what the Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum and Barber Motorsports Park could bring to Birmingham and a wider audience was astonishing for its farsightedness. Part of that vision was a robust and engaging museum exhibition program. To be asked to curate these two exhibitions in celebration of George’s life is a thrill and an honour.”

The Ducati 100 exhibition will take a look back through the company's past, and present, including how it became a modern-day motorcycle brand that’s considered to be one of the biggest in the world. 

The GSX-R|40 concentrates on the Japanese brand’s flagship superbike model, which celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2026 with a brand-new GSX-R1000R.