Imola’s famous race track first opened in 1953 as the Autodromo di Imola, designed as a semi-permanent circuit. Back then, it didn’t have any chicanes, so long stretches like the run from Acque Minerali to Rivazza—and from there all the way to Tosa—were essentially straightaways with just a few gentle bends. This fast, flowing layout stayed in place until 1972.
The track quickly became a hub for motorsport. Its first motorcycle races were held in April 1953, followed by the first car race in June 1954. By April 1963, Imola welcomed its first Formula One event, a non-championship race won by Jim Clark in a Lotus. Another non-championship F1 race came in 1979, this time won by Niki Lauda driving for Brabham-Alfa Romeo.
Imola officially joined the Formula One World Championship calendar in 1980 by hosting that year’s Italian Grand Prix—the first time since 1948 that Monza didn’t host it. Nelson Piquet won the race, and it was such a hit that a new event, the San Marino Grand Prix, was created just for Imola in 1981. It stayed on the F1 schedule until 2006. That race ran for 60 laps around the 5.040 km (3.132 mi) circuit, adding up to a total of 300 kilometres.
Beyond Formula One, Imola has welcomed plenty of other major series. It hosted rounds of the Superbike World Championship from 2001 to 2006 and again starting in 2009, and it has been the final stop of the FIM Motocross World Championship since 2018.
The World Touring Car Championship has visited several times as well: the Race of San Marino in 2005, the Race of Europe in 2008, and the Race of Italy in 2009. Imola was also part of the International GT Open from 2009 to 2011 and again in 2021, and the TCR International Series competed there in 2016.
Endurance racing fans know Imola for events like the 6 Hours of Imola, revived in 2011 and held through 2016 as part of the Le Mans Series and Intercontinental Le Mans Cup. It returned to the European Le Mans Series in 2022 as the 4 Hours of Imola. The track also hosted the 12 Hours of Imola in 2017–2018 as part of the 24H Series.
Imola isn’t just for motorsport—it has cycling history too. The circuit formed part of the finishing route for the 1968 UCI Road World Championships, where Vittorio Adorni took a dominant win with a huge 10-minute lead, the second-largest margin ever. Fellow Italian Michele Dancelli earned bronze, and five of the top six riders were Italian. The track has also appeared in the Giro d’Italia, hosting stage finishes in 2015 (won by Ilnur Zakarin) and 2018 (won by Sam Bennett). Most recently, it served as the start and finish of the 2020 UCI Road World Championships on September 27, 2020.
