Bernie Buys Paul Ricard.

Bernie Ecclestone has added the Paul Ricard circuit to his portfolio of Formula One interests, it was reported on Eurosport today.


Ecclestone, who runs the sport through his Formula One Adminstration organisation, will take control of the former French Grand Prix venue at the end of the season, following a change of heart by the previous owners, although no purchase price has been revealed. A brief statement issued at the announcement of the sale read as follows: "The owners [of Paul Ricard] came to the conclusion that, after 30 years of inactivity, the circuit needed to be rebuilt".


Paul Ricard sits among the dusty plains at Le Castellet, in southern France, and was financed by the drinks magnate and inventor of pastis after which it was named. The circuit played host to the French Grand Prix between the early 1970s and the early '90s, before losing out to a modernised Magny-Cours. It still plays host to the world motorcycle championship, however.