In 1959 a new circuit was constructed around the perimeter of the nearby Le Sequestre aerodrome, west of Albi. Initially held as a Formula Junior event, the Grand Prix then took place for some years under Formula Two regulations, at a time when Formula One drivers such as Jim Clark, Jack Brabham and Graham Hill regularly took part in other formulae. It then ran under Formula Three and Formula Renault regulations for many years, but in recent times has been run as a historic or GT race.
The original 1933 circuit was a roughly triangular course 9.226 km (5.733 mi) in length running north-east from Les Planques on the east of Albi to Saint-Juéry, then south-west to meet the Route de Millau and then back to Les Planques. In 1934, the circuit length was slightly decreased to 8.911 km (5.537 mi). In 1954 the distance was considerably shortened to 2.991 km (1.859 mi), cutting out the run to Saint-Juéry.[1]
The 1933 Albi Grand Prix was won by Pierre Veyron in a Bugatti Type 51A. Veyron went on to win the race twice more in 1934 and 1935. The event was held up until the outbreak of the Second World War, other winners including B. Bira and Luigi Villoresi. Tazio Nuvolari won the first post-war race in 1946 with a Maserati 4CL.[2]
From 1947 to 1955 the race would mostly be held as a Formula One event. Louis Rosier won four times during this period, and future world Champion Juan Manuel Fangio won in 1949. The 1955 Le Mans disaster brought racing at Les Planques to a halt, the circuit deemed to be unsafe.
