Grand Prix de l’Âge d’Or

Dijon-Prenois sits in the Côte-d'Or hills west of the city, a 3.8-kilometre circuit that opened in 1972 and has largely been left alone since. It hosted the French Grand Prix seven times, and it was here in 1979 that Gilles Villeneuve and René Arnoux spent the final lap of a Formula 2 race side by side, trading paint through every corner — one of the most referenced moments in the sport's history. The circuit still feels like that era: compact, fast, with spectators close to the action on all sides.

The Grand Prix de l'Âge d'Or is the oldest historic racing meeting in France, first run in 1964 at Rouen-les-Essarts as a support event to the Formula 1 French Grand Prix. The 2026 edition is the 61st, now running under the Le Mans Classic Series banner by Peter Auto. Eight grids share the programme: 2.0L Cup, Classic Endurance Racing 1 and 2, Classic Touring Challenge, Sixties' Endurance, The Gentleman Challenge, Heritage Touring Cup and the new Heritage Touring Cup 2. Around 300 competition cars cover the period from 1950 to 1992. Friday is reserved for Pass Privilège holders; Saturday and Sunday are open to the public.

The paddock at Dijon-Prenois is fully open throughout the weekend. The temporary garages run along the inside of the bowl, accessible without barriers, which means you can walk the full length of the paddock between sessions and watch the cars being prepared a few metres away. An exhibitor village adds books, miniatures and parts; club parking brings several hundred road cars onto site for track sessions of their own.

From Switzerland the A36 westbound through Belfort and into Burgundy takes around two hours from Basel. Dijon itself is worth arriving a day early — the old city is compact, the market at Les Halles runs on Saturday mornings, and the Route des Grands Crus south through Gevrey-Chambertin and Nuits-Saint-Georges is one of the better slow drives in eastern France.