The French F1 Grand Prix soon sold out
The French Grand Prix made its return to the drivers' calendar in 2018, after ten years of absence. It came back to the Circuit Paul Ricard, which had already hosted this GP fourteen times, between 1971 and 1990, and the 2022 edition is soon to be fully announced!
The French Grand Prix 2020 had been cancelled due to the global health situation. Organizing the French GP in 2021 proved to be a challenge for the organizers. Indeed, while doubts remained about the event taking place, the Paul Ricard circuit was still able to accommodate 15,000 spectators, despite the Grand Prix’s date being moved just a few weeks before its original date. With the cancellation of the Turkish GP, the Styrian Grand Prix was added to the 2021 calendar in place of the French GP, which had its date shifted one week earlier. This disrupted the schedules of many fans.
A successful 2021 edition despite the circumstances.
Three sanitary bubbles were set up during this edition, dividing spectators into three groups of 5,000 people, 90% of whom came from the national territory. The communication director of the French Grand Prix, Pierre Guyonnet-Dupérat, emphasizes the sporting interest that this edition has generated. « We managed to organize this Grand Prix under very specific health constraints. In terms of organization, we were able to rise to the challenge! » he confides.
On the sporting side, it has been more than interesting edition, because we have had a lot of sportsmanship. The 2021 French Grand Prix is the third Grand Prix with the most overtakes of the year. We are in the top 5 according to the ratings of the spectators on Race Fans. We are in the top 7 on Canal+, so we were very happy from a sporting perspective and it was a very beautiful edition. Especially with Max Verstappen overtaking Lewis Hamilton a few laps before the finish, revealed Pierre Guyonnet-Dupérat.
In 2022, the French Grand Prix will take place on Sunday, July 24th at Le Castellet. And tickets to attend the event are selling quickly, so much so that the organizers expect it to be sold out. The communication director says, “There is a strong enthusiasm, we are just a few weeks away from being sold out.” He also adds, “We will be sold out on race day, we will be sold out on Saturday. There is a real desire from the fans to come.”
Note that French driver Pierre Gasly recently announced that he has created a grandstand named after him at the first chicane. This new addition could potentially attract more Formula 1 fans, especially those of AlphaTauri’s victorious driver in the 2020 Grand Prix.
However, the contract for the French Grand Prix with F1 has not yet been extended beyond this 2022 edition. The discussions are currently still ongoing.
