Versailles` Mayor Wants F1 in Paris

Versailles F1 Proposal Gets Political

The issue of moving the French Gran Prix to Versailles has just become a political one. A national daily newspaper in France, Le Figaro, reported in a two page article on how the idea to host an F1 race in the famous Paris suburb has created a debate among political candidates in the upcoming municipal elections. The article was titled “F1 in pole position in the campaign”.

Current Mayor of Versailles, Etienne Pinte, has opposed the views of French Minister, Christine Albanel, who believes that the race should not be considered because of the multitude of historic monuments in the area. The mayor was quoted as saying “In a town like Monaco where there are a lot more constraints than in Versailles, there has never been a problem”.

The UMP political party apparently support Pinte’s views concerning the positive economic impact that hosting an F1 race could bring to the area. However, political opponents have criticised the idea as “aberrant and contrary to our engagements in sustainable development”. Pinte has suggested that the race could be staged at a former tank testing ground which is now used by Peugeot, based at Satory plain.