Circuit d'Albi, Racing Circuit

The Circuit d'Albi is a permanent racing track laid out around the perimeter of the active municipal aerodrome at Le Sequestre, just outside Albi in the Tarn department of southern France, roughly 80 km northeast of Toulouse. It was built in 1962 to replace the dangerous Circuit Les Planques road course, with the 20th Grand Prix d'Albi opening the new track that September before some 30,000 spectators. In its early decades the long, narrow straights drew Formula Junior, Formula Three and Formula Two grids, with drivers such as Jack Brabham, Graham Hill, Jackie Stewart, Jean-Pierre Beltoise and the young Alain Prost all racing there. Repeated runway extensions and tightening safety standards reshaped the lap over the years, with the western end squared off in 1981 and chicanes progressively inserted, so the once flat-out blast is now a stop-start circuit punctuated by slow corners. The current 3.565 km configuration dates from 2009, when the Clubhouse corner became a chicane and the fast final sweeper onto the main straight was removed. It is the second-oldest continuously operating purpose-built circuit in France and once hosted the 1951 French motorcycle Grand Prix. Over the years it has staged the FFSA GT Championship, French F3, French Supertouring, French Formula Renault and Porsche Carrera Cup France rounds. After its operator went into liquidation in 2014, the city of Albi entrusted management to DS Events in 2015, reviving the calendar. Today the venue hosts FFSA circuit championships, truck racing, MitJet cars and the historic Grand Prix d'Albi.

Operated by: ASAC du Midi-Pyrénées / Ville d'Albi