Born in Le Mans on 4 December 1944, Migault grew up in the city whose streets and surroundings are inseparable from the mythology of endurance racing. The annual 24-hour race staged there would become the thread running through virtually his entire motorsport career, from his debut as a 27-year-old in 1972 through to his final appearance in 2002, by which point he was in his mid-fifties. That level of sustained commitment to a single event — 25 entries across three decades — is remarkable by any measure in professional motorsport.
Migault's route into Formula One ran through the small, underfunded teams that populated the lower reaches of the grid during the early 1970s. His first attempt, in 1972, came with the Connew team, a tiny private entrant that managed to start in only one race that season; Migault debuted on 13 August 1972.
A more substantial opportunity arrived in 1974 when British Racing Motors, once one of the most celebrated names in Grand Prix racing but by then a declining force, needed drivers following the departures of Niki Lauda and Clay Regazzoni, both of whom had left for Ferrari. Migault drove almost a complete season for BRM, gaining more regular Formula One mileage than he had previously managed, though the team was unable to provide machinery capable of challenging for points.
In 1975, he made further brief appearances with two more teams: the Embassy Hill outfit, which was battling its own financial and competitive difficulties, and Williams, also going through a lean transitional period. Neither association produced championship points. Across his 16 World Championship starts, Migault remained pointless, a result that reflected the machinery available to him rather than any lack of commitment or competence.
Alongside his Formula One commitments, Migault competed in the European Formula Two Championship. In 1975 he achieved some success with an Osella FA2, scoring a single championship point — a more tangible reward than his Grand Prix outings ever provided.
The 24 Hours of Le Mans was the constant in Migault's career. He entered 25 times, a total that placed him among the most frequent participants in the race's modern era. His finest result came in 1976, when he finished second overall, a podium that represented the peak of his achievement in the sport. Two further podium finishes at the same event added to a Le Mans record that dwarfed his Formula One legacy in terms of results.
Migault continued racing at Le Mans deep into middle age, his last appearance coming in 2002, three decades after his first. The race clearly held a significance for him that went beyond professional obligation — a native of the city returning to its most famous stage year after year.
After retiring from competition, Migault remained associated with motorsport. He died on 29 January 2012, following a long battle with cancer, at the age of 67.
Migault occupies an interesting position in the history of the sport: a driver who never scored a Formula One championship point and who competed with chronically under-resourced teams, yet who found his true calling in endurance racing and persisted at the highest level of that discipline long past the age when most contemporaries had walked away. His 25 Le Mans starts, topped by a second-place overall finish in 1976, are the measure by which his career is best assessed.