Official: Villeneuve, Prost and Fébreau join Canal+
Canal+ unveiled its plan for covering the F1 Grand Prix in 2013. Jacques Villeneuve and Julien Fébreau will provide commentary on the encrypted channel, while Thomas Sénécal will serve as the presenter. The free-to-air magazine, broadcast at 6 PM on Sundays, will be presented by Thomas Thouroude with regular appearances by Alain Prost. Subscribers will find the F1 Specialists on Wednesday evenings.
During a press conference held this morning in Boulogne-Billancourt, Canal+ unveiled its lineup for the Formula 1 season. The channel will exclusively broadcast the Formula 1 season. After much speculation, the encrypted channel officially announced the arrival of Julien Fébreau and Jacques Villeneuve, the 1997 world champion, as commentators.
Far from being unknown in the F1 world and among enthusiasts, Julien Fébreau, correspondent for the newspaper *L’Equipe* on Grand Prix, had already commented on the races live on the radio, alongside Alexandre Delpérier, first on *RMC* and then on *Europe 1*.
The arrival of Jacques Villeneuve is more surprising insofar as, at the end of January, the Canadian had been announced as an F1 consultant for Sky Sports Italia. The 1997 world champion had then stated: « It’s something new for me. At home, I used to criticize commentators who said false things. I can bring my experience as a former Formula 1 driver and perhaps say interesting things. Now, maybe someone will be angry with me. » Opportunities should not be lacking as the Quebecer, in recent years, has been known for his scathing comments and his straightforwardness.
Thomas Sénécal, former presenter of Automoto on TF1 and a member of the editorial team at Canal+ for several years, becomes “anchorman”—to use the expression by Canal+ on Twitter—in other words, he will be the presenter of F1 on the encrypted channel.
Canal+ had indicated that a free-to-air magazine would be broadcast, similar to what the channel already offers with the Canal Football Club. Thomas Thouroude thus takes on the presentation of the show Formula One, the F1 magazine, which will be broadcast every Grand Prix Sunday, starting at 6 p.m. and free-to-air. It should be noted that the four-time world champion, Alain Prost, will regularly contribute his expertise during this show accessible to all.
Like football and handball, Canal+ will also offer a debate and analysis show reserved for its subscribers, every Wednesday after Grand Prix: *Les Spécialistes F1*.
Even though no announcement has been made, it is possible that Jean-Louis Moncet, Margot Laffite, and Franck Montagny could strengthen the setup put in place by Canal+ as they were present at the press conference, alongside Cyril Linette, the head of Sports for the channel. “This morning, the big Canal+ show for the presentation of the F1 team. And I am happy to be a part of it. Very happy,” Jean-Louis Moncet tweeted, who had spared no criticism for TF1 and Eurosport on their coverage of F1 on their respective channels.
Note to subscribers, the team thus formed will go on air from 6:30 am on March 17 to cover the Australian Grand Prix live on Canal+. It will be rebroadcast on Canal+ Sport the same day at 12:55 pm and on Monday morning. The practice sessions and qualifications will be broadcast on Canal+ Sport, a channel included in the subscription. The Motorsinside.com editorial team will provide you, as in 2012, with the complete schedule of television and radio broadcasts on the eve of each Grand Prix.
