F1 will keep racing at Imola until 2025

The Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at the Enzo and Dino Ferrari Autodrome - more commonly known among us linguistically limited folk as plain old ‘Imola’ - will continue until at least 2025.

The race rejoined the F1 calendar at short notice as part of the makeshift, Covid-upturned year that was 2020, and was retained last season thanks to popular demand.

And now its future has been secured for the medium term thanks to the agreement of a new contract, just days after the plug was pulled on the Russian Grand Prix for good.

“I am delighted that we will be continuing our excellent partnership with Imola for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix until 2025,” said F1 president and CEO Stefano Domenicali. “The circuit is iconic and has been part of the history of our sport and they have done an incredible job of hosting two races during the pandemic.

“It is a proud moment for our Italian fans to host two races and for all our fans around the world to see this fantastic circuit on the calendar for the future.”

Imola first hosted F1 in 1980, standing in as host of the Italian GP as Monza was being refurbished, but it joined the schedule the following year as the San Marino Grand Prix.

Despite its challenging layout, it’s sadly more commonly remembered as the place where Ayrton Senna lost his life in a high speed crash in 1994.

Imola’s first stint in F1 came to an end in 2006, but a host of safety improvements since then have made it viable once more.

“This is not only a great success for sport in Italy but also a great enrichment for the top international motorsport series,” said Angelo Sticchi Damiani, president of the Automobile Club of Italy, adding that the track represented “one of the most difficult races, but also the greatest, and the one that’s mostly loved by both drivers and teams.”

But what about your good self: are you pleased that Imola is staying for the foreseeable future?