The Formula 1 World Championship returns to Europe over eight months after the last Grand Prix on the continent, held in Italy at Monza on September 3. Italy has hosted the most Grands Prix (105) for the top motorsport competition, with 30 of these races at the Enzo and Dino Ferrari Circuit in Imola.
This weekend will see the fourth edition of the Emilia-Romagna and Made in Italy Grand Prix, a title used from 2020 to 2022. Last year’s race was canceled due to a flood that devastated parts of the region, causing casualties and destruction.
For the seventh race of the season, Pirelli has selected the softest dry-weather compound trio: C3 as Hard, C4 as Medium, and C5 as Soft. This choice was planned for last year but couldn’t be tested due to the race cancellation. Therefore, this will be the debut of this combination on the Emilia track, with 2022 having used C2, C3, and C4.
Imola is one of the historic tracks remaining on the calendar and is known for being very technical, highlighting the drivers’ talents as they navigate complex combinations of corners and braking zones. Enzo Ferrari, in whose memory the circuit has been named since 1988 (after initially being dedicated to his son Dino in 1957), was one of the project’s promoters and called it a “little Nürburgring.”
The track isn’t particularly harsh on tires, and the asphalt remains relatively abrasive despite the last resurfacing in 2011, which covered about 70% of its nearly five-kilometer length. The surface provides a good level of grip, increasing as more cars lap the circuit.
Comprising 19 turns (10 left, 9 right) and featuring significant elevation changes (a 30-meter difference between the highest and lowest points), the track is relatively narrow with only one DRS zone, making overtaking difficult. Therefore, qualifying results will be crucial for the race outcome. Notably, no one has ever won at this circuit starting from beyond the fifth position on the grid, and 19 out of 30 times, the winner has started from the front row.
Choosing the three softest compounds should provide more pit stop options for a race traditionally involving just one tire change, partly due to the high time lost in the pit lane. There’s also a high likelihood of race neutralizations, which have occurred in over 70% of races at Imola. One recent track modification is the reintroduction of gravel outside the Acque Minerali, making off-track excursions more punishing.
Thirty races have been held along the Santerno River, which flows beside the circuit. This is the third title for the Imola race. In 1980, it debuted as the Italian Grand Prix, the only time the event was held away from its traditional home at Monza. From 1981 to 2006, Formula 1 raced in Emilia under the banner of the neighboring Republic of San Marino. In the troubled COVID year, the top motorsport competition returned to Imola as the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, with the Made in Italy designation added from the following year.
Of the 20 drivers entered in this year’s race, only Fernando Alonso raced at Imola when it was the San Marino Grand Prix. The Spaniard won in 2005 after an exhilarating duel with Michael Schumacher, repeated the following year with reversed results. Schumacher holds the record with seven victories (six with Ferrari, one with Benetton), while Williams and Ferrari share the record for most wins (8). Ayrton Senna holds the record for pole positions here with 8, including his last on April 30, thirty years ago, during a weekend marred by the death of Austrian driver Roland Ratzenberger. The following day, Senna himself tragically died, in one of the most tragic weekends in the history of the sport. This weekend, his memory will be honored through a series of events organized by the promoter and the entire Formula 1 family.
Minimum starting tire pressures (slicks)
Front: 25.0 psi
Rear: 21.5 psi
Maximum camber
Front: -3.00°
Rear: -1.75°
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