With Liberty’s full support in terms of promotion, a restored and reimagined grand prix may help F1 take off in India, which is still a crucial market.
Number 5. Magny-Cours
Four unremarkable excursions to Le Castellet proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that Paul Ricard, with those garish run-off strips, is a test track with ideas above its station, making F1’s return to France in 2018 the right move to the wrong circuit.
Magny-Cours, which hosted the French GP from 1991 to 2008, is currently the greatest of the lot. Le Mans is the only outstanding track in France, which is surprising considering that it is a major centre for motor racing.
The middle sector’s two rapid chicanes, imaginatively named Nurburgring and Imola, are the highlight of the lap, closely followed by Estoril’s lengthy, winding Turn 3 right-hander, where drivers cling on for dear life while striving to maintain a high minimum speed.
