Martin Bureau/Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesThe Nevers Magny-Cours racetrack in 2007, during the second practice session of the French Grand Prix.
PARIS — As the campaigning for the French presidential election shifts into high gear, so is the campaigning for the French Grand Prix.
There has not been a Formula One race in this country since 2008.This being France, there has been a lot of talk since then, but the campaign is picking up in earnest now. Just when it seemed that the race’s venue from 1991 to 2008, Magny-Cours in central France, was entirely out of the picture, and that the old Castellet circuit in the south that hosted the race 14 times was the only place it could happen, Magny-Cours is back.
Or rather, according to a story in the French sports daily, L’Equipe, Magny-Cours — located near Nevers, and a lot of cows — never considered itself out of the running, and is disappointed that all the talk has turned toward Castellet.
But that’s politics. Last week François Fillon, the prime minister, gathered the media at the Castellet circuit on the coast and told them how much he and the government wanted the race.
In fact, Mr. Fillon went so far as to say that there was no other circuit “in France aside from Paul-Ricard,” the Castellet track, “capable of hosting the French Grand Prix, both technically and thanks to the help of the local authorities, without having financial help from the state.”
Well, just when it has become politically correct to say that Formula One has nothing to do with the politics of the host country — I’m thinking particularly of the situation surrounding the Bahrain Grand Prix, oh, and take a look at Damon Hill’s latest turnaround in The Guardian on that subject — it seems that the French Grand Prix, in particular, has become deeply rooted in the country’s politics.
Magny-Cours, you see, is located in a region with connections not to President Nicolas Sarkozy’s party, but to that of François Hollande, his main challenger. (The Socialist senator, François Patriat, is the president of the Burgundy regional council, and he wants the French Grand Prix back at Magny-Cours.)
Serge Saulnier, president of the company running the Magny-Cours circuit, told L’Equipe in Thursday’s story: “We are candidates for hosting the French Grand Prix. And I am surprised, in fact, that the ministerial group in charge of this dossier has made it sound like Castellet is the only option. In fact, we were never taken into consideration, never listened to or received.”
He added that last February the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile, the F1 body, granted the circuit a three-year extension of its certification as a Formula One track, capable of hosting 140,000 spectators.
“Contrary to the situation at Paul Ricard,” Mr. Saulnier added, “we do not have any heavy investments to make to host the public.”
He added that the Socialist party structures of the area would ensure that the necessary finances would be available.
The circuit is partly owned by Guy Ligier, a former Formula One team owner, who is now 81 years old and a longtime friend of Bernie Ecclestone, the Formula One promoter who brokers the contracts for hosting the races. Ligier told L’Equipe that he had been speaking to Mr. Ecclestone about the situation and trying to gain his support for returning the race to Magny-Cours.
“It is not yet lost for Magny-Cours,” Mr. Ligier said.
But what L’Equipe’s story made clear was that no decision about the race would be made until after the presidential elections.