French Formula One Grand Prix
The Circuit Paul Richard was founded in 1969 by the French drinks magnate of the same name. The original track was a 3.6 mile lap that was generally felt to be one of the safest in the world until popular Italian racing driver Elio de Angeles was killed there after a crash during practice for the 1986 French Grand Prix. This led to a number of safety modifications and the last five Grand Prixs to be held at the Paul Richard took place over the shortened 2.36 miles circuit.
The track runs in a clockwise direction, as do the majority of F1 tracks, starting with the start/finish straight running alongside the pit lane, followed by a fast left-right kink at Verriere. A short straight ended in a right-left-right chicane followed by a further short straight before the double-apex right hand Bend at Saint Beaurne. Next comes the challenging left-hander at L'ecole and the start of the Mistral Straight, which is split with a chicane partway along its length, after which the track continues through a sweeping right-hander at Signes, followed by another short straight that ended in the tightening right-hand bend of Beausset. Then comes the final complex of four bends; Bendor, Village, Tour and the hairpin Virage du Pont, which lead back to the fast finishing straight. The circuit is now known as the Paul Richard High-Tech Test Track. The popular Provence circuit now includes a track-drenching facility and state of the art run-off areas. |
PAUL RICARD
LOCATION: Le Castellet, France
CIRCUIT TYPE: Permanent Circuit
CIRCUIT LENGTH: 3.6 Miles
LAP RECORD: 1:39.914 - K.Rosberg 1985
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