French PM Outraged by Lack of GP

Finally, a high-ranked French official publicly expressed his outrage on his country not being able to secure the hosting of a Formula One grand prix. It was none other that French prime minister Francois Fillon that revealed he'll push for the government to make all the necessary steps in order to solve that problem as soon as possible.

“I cannot believe that we do not have a grand prix of France. The government will do everything so that there is a (GP) as quickly as possible,” said Fillon, when talking to Europe 1 radio station. Fillon is known to be a race enthusiast, as he was born in the famous Le Mans region, whose circuit hosts the historical 24 Hours of Le Mans race.

Magny Cours circuit lost the chance to stay in Formula One at the end of 2008, as the venue would have needed to benefit from some major investments in order to update its track and facilities. Three time Formula One champion Alain Prost then forwarded to the French government a potential French GP hosting site at Disneyland, but the project was soon dismissed.

Prost's efforts did not end there, however, as he pushed for a new project – a more feasible one, we might add – at Flins-Les-Mureaux. The potential of this site is currently disputed between Fillon and a member of his cabinet, environment minister Jean-Louis Borloo, as building a circuit at Flins-Les-Mureaux is heavily opposed by ecologist organizations.

“Everyone has their own agenda. It is difficult to get everyone in unison, much time and energy is wasted. And then there are the people who make a lot of noise without knowing enough. I don't want to give up but it is difficult to be constantly between two points: it is happening, it is not happening. It's typical France,” said Prost in mid-May, regarding the political conflict created by the aforementioned project.