a French Grand Prix that has become a historic round on the calendar, unlike its equivalent in Formula 1

If Le Mans made itself known to fans of motor sports for the 24 Hours of cars, it is the motorcycles that will rev their engines on the Bugatti circuit, Sunday May 14, for the 1,000th Grand Prix in the history of the MotoGP. And the fact that this historic round coincides with the weekend of the French Grand Prix is ​​perhaps no coincidence. Unlike its equivalent in Formula 1 which has disappeared from the calendar this year, the French stage of the MotoGP championship has become an unmissable event on the calendar. It was even voted “best Grand Prix of the season” in 2022 by IRTA, the association of teams present in MotoGP, Moto2 and Moto3.

“We make sure that the spectators have a great weekend, because the public is the best backdrop in sport”. This is how Claude Michy, promoter of the French Motorcycle Grand Prix, sums up what makes the event such a success. Organizer of the French round of the MotoGP world championship since 1994, he has observed the rise in popularity of the discipline, which has grown from 25,000 spectators thirty years ago to 110,000 in 2022, for a record attendance on the world championship season. “We organize a lot of entertainment outside the race, with concerts and mechanical shows for example, and the tickets give access to everything, including car parks, and are free for accompanied under-sixteens. Humbly, we has become a model for other Grands Prix”rejoices Claude Michy.

The promoter has also benefited in recent years from the performances of French drivers, Fabio Quartararo and Johann Zarco. “Fabio is a world champion, he is young, he has all the communication codes of his time, and Johann is a great driver too, he notes. With the very good television production, the embedded cameras and the media coverage, this develops the popularity of the bike, especially since the sporting interest is more pronounced than in Formula 1, with very little performance difference between the bikes “. And if a few rounds were raced at the Paul Ricard circuit in the 90s, the Grand Prix de France has now been installed since 2000 at Le Mans, a legendary site for motorsport. “A lot of work has been done there for safety and hospitality infrastructure by local public authorities. And at the sporting level, we work with the Automobile Club de l’Ouest, which has fantastic marshals and race management. which is perhaps the best in the world”boasts Claude Michy.

The value of history in MotoGP, the “cash machine” in F1

This solid anchoring of the Grand Prix de France in the calendar is also due to Dorna, the promoter of the MotoGP world championship, which values ​​the historical aspect. “We have an international promoter who aims to do business, but who takes into account the heritage of motorcyclingexplains Sébastien Poirier, president of the French Motorcycle Federation (FMM). And in this heritage, there are flagship nations which must be part of the calendar, because it is the guarantee of popular success, which will offer beautiful images, even if Dorna would have more financial interest in go to Saudi Arabia than to France or Italy”. Thus, of the 20 rounds of the season, eleven are contested in Europe, including three in Spain. A new Grand Prix will be contested in India (there was to be a new date in Kazakhstan as well, but the event has been canceled due to ongoing homologation works on the circuit). In the Gulf countries, MotoGP only stops in Qatar (since 2004), with only 6,600 spectators welcomed during the race in 2022. An agreement has also been reached with Saudi Arabia for a future Grand Prix, not before 2027.

Quite the opposite of Formula 1, which has developed several races in the Gulf countries in recent years: Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Abu Dhabi, in addition to the three Grands Prix in the United States in 2023, in Miami (played May 7), Austin and Las Vegas. Reintroduced in 2018, the Grand Prix de France, which brought together 200,000 spectators in 2022, paid the price by disappearing from the calendar this season. The Grand Prix of Spa-Francorchamps (Belgium) is also threatened for the coming seasons. “The vision is very different between Dorna and the promoters of Formula 1Judge Claude Michy. F1 is a cash machine. They are not in the same world and do not take into account the historical framework”.

Essential political support in F1

If the MotoGP French Grand Prix does not need political support to exist, and “only receives 50,000 euros in public aid out of a budget of 13 million euros” according to Claude Michy, the situation is not the same in Formula 1. “F1, today, 32 countries are asking to have a Grand Prix on their territory. As there are only 23 races, they are forced to say no to people who are almost on their knees in front of F1 saying: ‘Please come, come! We welcome you with open arms!’ This has never been the case in France.”recently regretted Jean Alesi, president of the Paul Ricard circuit, guest of the program “Les Fous Du Volant” on Europsort. “We have had the French Grand Prix for the last five years, apart from the year marked by the coronavirus pandemic of course, but it has always been shunned by our politicians. I am not talking about those in the region, because that it is thanks to them that F1 was able to return, but not having a president today on a Formula 1 grid is frowned upon”.

Interviewed by the newspaper The Team on May 6, Stefano Domenicali, the boss of Formula 1, awaits a gesture from the top of the state. “More than anyone, I want your country back on the calendar, but you have to make the efforts that others are making. The day when President Macron tells me that he wants to discuss to talk about the return of France, I come. If he wants to talk, I’ll be there whenever he wants to talk about it.” he claimed, without however giving a possible deadline for the return of F1 to France. The organization contract for the MotoGP French Grand Prix runs until 2026.