For the first time in over a decade, French venue Circuit Des Ducs at Essay will host a round of the FIA European Rallycross Championship in 2024, on June 8-9.
Following the recently-announced return of the French Rallycross Championship to the Normandy venue, the circuit that hosted the first-ever Euro RX event in France, back in 1978, will return to the international stage with the opening round of the 2024 campaign in June.
Circuit Des Ducs was recently brought under new ownership and is currently undergoing significant overhaul to all facilities to bring it up to the standard expected by French and international fans and teams, ahead of a busy season.
Situated in North West France, the Essay circuit’s layout and location has made it a popular test venue for French and international teams over the years, while producing exciting racing at events in its unique, intimate amphitheatre venue.
Circuit Des Ducs will host the first of round of Euro RX this year as the only standalone European event on the calendar, and will include the headline the RX1 (Supercar) and RX3 (Super1600) classes. Subsequently the Euro RX series will join World Rallycross Championship events in Sweden, Hungary, Belgium and Portugal to determine the 2024 champions.
Later in the year, the French Rallycross Championship will return to Essay for the first time since 2019, when Belgian legend Francois Duval claimed victory, with the penultimate round of the 2024 campaign on October 5-6.
Spectator tickets will go on sale soon, keep up with the circuit’s new social media channels: @essayrallycross, while the venue is open for testing.
Get in touch!
HOWARD MACPHERSON, CIRCUIT DES DUCS, OWNER:
I have been totally encapsulated by this wonderful circuit since taking it over last year. When I arrived for the first time for a test day I immediately fell in love with the venue and we are making a significant investment to bring it back to a standard it deserves. Circuit Des Ducs is a big part of the community in Essay, it has a massive history in French and international rallycross and it’s a huge vote of confidence that we are hosting both the European and French Championships in our first season of running the venue. I must say a big thanks to the promotors of both series for having faith in us, the local community in Essay who have welcomed us with open arms and the ASA Des Ducs club that is such an integral part of events happening at this venue. We are so excited for the future, first with 2024, and beyond.