San Marino Grand Prix Tickets
Race ticket information forSan Marino Grand Prix Tickets.Also known as the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, the Imola racing circuit hosted its first Grand Prix on 14 September 1980, when FIA and Monza were in dispute and the Italian Grand Prix needed a temporary home. Since then, Imola has been a staple in the annual F1 Championship calender. Since then the ItalianGrand Prix has been hosted at Monza and San Marino was granted its own independent Grand Prix. It is interesting to note that the Imola racing track is actually not located in San Marino, but just over the border in Italy.
With the first three F1 championship Grand Prix of the season being outside of Europe, the F1 teams are always looking forward to the F1 championship’s first European race, the San Marino Grand Prix. Returning to Europe for most teams means that they are back on home turf and can use their own trucks and caravans, instead of rented accommodations.
The first San Marino Grand Prix was held at Imola in 1979 and back then was a non-championship event, with the F1 organizers adhering to the rule of ‘one race per country’. The track itself was opened in 1952 and rarely hosted any major events.
The first ever San Marino Grand Prix in 1980 was won by Nelson Nelson Piquet, driving a Brabham-Cosworth car, with a time of 1:38’07.52 and an average speed of 183.439 kph (114.65 mph).
However, the Imola track will always be associated with the fateful day in 1994 when Brazilian Ayrton Senna and Austrian Roland Ratzenberger tragically died at the track. During qualifying rounds Ratzenberger became the first driver in 12 years to be killed during a Grand Prix weekend. Just 24 hours later, Senna was killed while leading the race at the Tamburello corner. The loss of this legendary Brazilian driver shocked the F1 community, forcing a comprehensive review of the sport’s safety rules.
Nevertheless, Imola, the spiritual home of Ferrari, even today retains its racing magic and is a favorite among the drivers in the Grand Prix circuit. In future years, with the F1 organisers pledging to broaden the scope of countries hosting Grand Prix, it is likely that either Monza or Imola may be dropped from the calender.