The 2025 Scottsdale Auction was in full swing on Saturday, Jan. 18, for Coca-Cola Family Day, signaling the start of The World’s Greatest Collector Car Auction’s nine-day January event. The day celebrated car enthusiasts from all generations with activities for the whole family to enjoy and complimentary admission for children 12 and younger.
Throughout the day, guests enjoyed getting a close-up look at over 2,000 No Reserve collector vehicles and hundreds of automobilia items, enjoying live music, shopping in the Exhibitor Marketplace and fueling their visit at the many dining options located throughout the site.
Local car clubs – including the Leadfoot Ladies and a group of students from Phoenix Country Day School – made an appearance on Saturday, checking out all the auction site has to offer. Another group of local enthusiasts displayed their incredible supercars and hypercars in the Supercar Paddock on the BluePrint Engines Midway.
A highlight of the day included STEM Fest presented by Honeywell, part of Barrett-Jackson’s Gearing Towards the Future initiative. STEM Fest offered children an array of science, technology, engineering and math games, along with interactive displays featuring dinosaur fossils, a solar powered go-kart and other activities. The Honeywell display included a large turbofan engine propelling small wooden planes, with flight distances measured. A favorite stop among those in attendance was the Phoenix Zoo display, which featured a Brazilian Three-Banded Armadillo and other ambassador animals. The Mad Science Show drew in a large audience as Dr. Bones and Professor Boom taught guests about chemical reactions with exciting demonstrations.
The arena came alive in the afternoon with the Barrett-Jackson Cup Parade presented by Castrol, with 50 world-class customs crossing the famous auction block in front of all those in attendance and watching on the livestream. Each build is competing for the coveted Ultimate Best in Show award and a $20,000 cash purse. “Barrett-Jackson LIVE” commentator Rick DeBruhl introduced each of the incredible builds alongside Craig Jackson and Barrett-Jackson President Steve Davis. The revered Barrett-Jackson Cup judges, Bobby Alloway and Troy Trepanier, will narrow the group of custom builds down to the Top 5 throughout the week, revealing one each day in the South Showcase presented by Piper Aircraft, beginning on Monday, Jan. 20.
Fans can vote for their favorite builds on Cup.Barrett-Jackson.com. The build with the most votes will be awarded the People’s Choice award and will be announced on Saturday, Jan. 26, live on the HISTORY channel along with the Ultimate Best in Show winner.
The night before the custom builds crossed the block for the Barrett-Jackson Cup Parade, the auction arena had been transformed for the Rock The Block concert featuring Sammy Hagar and Friends Michael Anthony, Vic Johnson and Kenny Aronoff. The energetic event kicked off with Hagar and Friends driving onto the block in a 1962 Ford Thunderbird (Lot #1071.1), the very same car he cruised in with his legendary Montrose bandmates, including founder/guitarist Ronnie Montrose (whom the car used to belong to), bassist Bill Church and drummer Denny Carmassi. Later this week, the Thunderbird will return to the block and sell with No Reserve with a portion of the proceeds benefiting suicide prevention.
From the moment the gates opened on Day 2 of the 2025 Scottsdale Auction, the site at WestWorld was bustling with excitement. Bidders, collectors and car enthusiasts of all ages made their way through the vast venue to preview the 3,000-plus No Reserve collector cars and automobilia items that will begin crossing the world-famous auction block on Monday, Jan. 20.
A highlight for those in attendance was an up-close look at the five charity vehicles located throughout the auction site, with 100% of the hammer price benefiting each of their designated charities. Another draw was the North Showcase, featuring many of the highly anticipated supercars and Fantasy Bid vehicles slated to cross the block later this week. The first round of the 2025 Fantasy Bid game is open: To play, log in or sign up and predict the winning bids on a selection of Scottsdale Auction vehicles to get in the running for the 2025 grand prize, an all-new Dodge Durango.
Custom builds competing in the Barrett-Jackson Cup were on display in the South Showcase presented by Piper Aircraft, offering those in attendance a chance to view and vote online for their favorite to win the People’s Choice Award. The People’s Choice winner will be announced alongside the Ultimate Best in Show winner on Saturday, Jan. 25.
Guests also enjoyed Scottsdale’s signature sunny weather as they explored the BluePrint Engines Midway, enjoyed live music from Lacey Rashea at the Live Music Stage presented by Arizona Lottery and took in all the beautiful collector cars. The Monster Energy BMX Show had an enthusiastic audience all day as the professional riders performed stunts and soared through the air as fans cheered them on.
To read the full recaps for Days 1 and 2 on Barrett-Jackson.com, click the link here.
Source: www.classiccars.com