Dijon-Prenois
Dijon, France · Historic venue
A short, hilly French circuit and the venue for one of the greatest duels in Formula 1.
Circuit layout
Race historyA short, hilly French circuit and the venue for one of the greatest duels in Formula 1.
Circuit
- Circuit
- Dijon-Prenois
- Location
- Dijon, France
- Race laps
- 80
- First GP
- 1950
- Opened
- 1950
- Grands Prix
- 6
Last winner here
About Dijon-Prenois
Dijon-Prenois hosted five French Grands Prix between 1974 and 1984, plus the 1982 Swiss Grand Prix — a race held in France because motor racing had been banned in Switzerland since 1955.
The circuit is short and severely undulating, and its original layout was so brief that the 1974 race saw the leaders lapping backmarkers within a handful of laps. An extension was added in 1976 to address it.
Its place in Formula 1 history rests on the closing laps of the 1979 French Grand Prix, when René Arnoux and Gilles Villeneuve fought for second place across several laps of wheel banging and repeated position changes — still routinely cited as the finest duel the sport has produced.
Notable facts
- Hosted the 1982 Swiss Grand Prix, held in France because racing had been banned in Switzerland since 1955.
- The Arnoux–Villeneuve duel in the 1979 French Grand Prix is widely regarded as the greatest in Formula 1 history.
- The original layout was so short that leaders reached backmarkers within a few laps.
- Jean-Pierre Jabouille's 1979 win here was the first for a turbocharged Formula 1 car.
Grands Prix by decade
6 races, every decade from the 1970s to the 1980s.
Most wins — drivers
Most wins — constructors
Every Formula 1 winner at Dijon-Prenois
6 World Championship Grands Prix have been held here between 1974 and 1984.
| Year | Grand Prix | Winner | Constructor |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | French Grand Prix |  Niki Lauda |  McLaren |
| 1982 | Swiss Grand Prix |  Keke Rosberg |  Williams |
| 1981 | French Grand Prix |  Alain Prost | RRenault |
| 1979 | French Grand Prix |  Jean-Pierre Jabouille | RRenault |
| 1977 | French Grand Prix |  Mario Andretti | LTeam Lotus |
| 1974 | French Grand Prix |  Ronnie Peterson | LTeam Lotus |