Imola, Emilia-Romagna · IT
Imola is steeped in F1 history and emotion. The anti-clockwise circuit along the Santerno river features the famous Tamburello and Variante Alta corners, returning to the championship as the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
Imola runs anti-clockwise along the Santerno river on the edge of town, and it is old-school in a way few current circuits are: narrow, heavily kerbed, and lined with walls that leave little room for error. Tamburello, now a chicane, opens the lap; Tosa is a slow left with an uphill exit where traction decides everything; Acque Minerali is a downhill braking zone into a fast right; and the double left of Rivazza sets up the run to the line. Overtaking is genuinely difficult, which puts an unusual premium on qualifying.
The setting is much of the appeal. The circuit sits within walking distance of Imola's old town, so a race weekend feels embedded in an Italian town rather than parked in a field. Trains from Bologna take about 20 minutes, and since there are no shuttle buses most people walk the 20 minutes in from the station. The Senna memorial at Tamburello draws visitors year-round, not only on race weekends.
The autodrome was inaugurated in 1953 on a layout that followed the roads along the Santerno on the outskirts of the city. It was renamed in 1970 in honour of Enzo Ferrari's late son Dino, and after Enzo's own death in 1988 it took both their names.
The circuit is inseparable from the weekend of the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix, when Roland Ratzenberger was killed in qualifying and Ayrton Senna died in the race the following day. The consequences reshaped the sport's entire approach to safety, and the circuit itself was substantially rebuilt: Tamburello was replaced by a chicane, the Villeneuve curve was slowed by a variant, and further work followed at Acque Minerali, Rivazza and the Variante Bassa. Imola returned to the Formula 1 calendar in 2020 after a long absence.
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