Formula One Set To Return To France
Formula One looks set to complete a long-awaited return to France after the sport’s commercial rights holder, Bernie Ecclestone, confirmed that a deal is “done”. The Magny-Cours circuit was removed from F1’s calendar in 2009 after losing local backing, but the country has since been linked with a return at a variety of facilities.
Reports have intensified in recent months regarding a race-sharing deal that will see Le Castellet’s Paul Ricard Circuit stage a French Grand Prix.
Autosport reports that a contract has been sealed for five races running from 2013 to 2021, and Ecclestone has said only minor details remain to be ironed out before the agreement is signed.
‘The deal is done,’ said Ecclestone, according to the Daily Telegraph. ‘We actually agreed on financial terms with the Sports Minister, David Douillet, in my office last Tuesday. We are still discussing a few points about money around the race, ‘You give me this, I want that’ and so on. But, for me, there is no doubt that we will sort it all out.’
While the identity of Paul Ricard’s partner in the race-sharing deal has not yet been officially confirmed, it is widely reported to be Belgium’s Spa-Francorchamps circuit.
