F1 2022: All you need to know about the Imola Grand Prix

F1 is heading to Europe for the first time this season for the Imola Grand Prix, officially known as the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, in Italy this weekend.

The Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari, more commonly known simply as Imola, will host the event for a third time in 2022 after joining the F1 calendar in mid-2020.

The 63-laps race will take place on Sunday, April 24, while the first Sprint race of the season will take place the day prior on Saturday, April 23.

Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the 2022 Imola Grand Prix:

The Venue

Location: Imola, Italy

Type: Permanent Circuit

Circuit Length: 4.909 kilometers (3.050 miles)

First race held: 1980 (Italian GP); 1981 (The San Marino GP); 2020 (Emilia Romagna GP)

Located in the town of Imola, in Italy’s northern region of Emilia-Romagna, the Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari was originally built in 1953. Over the years, it has developed a notorious reputation as a circuit that severely punishes driver mistakes.

Just 40 kilometers away from the major city of Bologna, the circuit has hosted Formula 1 races under various guises since early 1980s.

Named after Ferrari’s late founder Enzo Ferrari and his son Dino, the circuit is also one of the few “old school” tracks still on the F1 calendar.

Imola is one of the hardest circuits to master. This is due to the tight and cambered corners that test a driver's skills and the gravel traps and grass that can ruin a race if they make a mistake. It is also one of the few anti-clockwise circuits on the calendar.

Since its return to the F1 calendar in 2020, the track has become a fan favorite, despite its narrow design leading to lesser on-track passes.

Nevertheless, it managed to produce two interesting races in both 2020 and 2021 due to changing weather conditions that mixed up the grid.

The 2020 race was the first time F1 cars raced on the track's new layout that has been in place since extensive modifications in 2008. The circuit has gone through several such modifications, mostly to reduce cornering speeds and improve safety.

Some of its original flowing corners have been tamed down with chicanes. This includes the original Turn 1 “Tamburello” corner, which had a reputation for throwing cars away from the racing line if the driver wasn’t careful enough.

The corner has caused some of the worst accidents in F1 history, with the deaths of the legendary Ayrton Senna and Roland Ratzenberger in 1994 being some of the worst.

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F1 Imola GP Form Guide

Following their dominating performances so far this season, Ferrari are the clear favorites heading into their first home race of the season.

Charles Leclerc will be under very little pressure to deliver once again, given both his comfort with the F1-75 and the Scuderia’s impressive reliability. Moreover, the Monegasque currently enjoys a healthy lead over his main title rivals.

Following two disappointing performances from Max Verstappen, Red Bull will be hoping to regain their advantage over the Italian team. While the Dutchman is keen to defend his maiden world title, not everything seems to be going his or the team’s way.

As they bring major upgrades to the car this weekend, Red Bull will also need to find some reliability to ensure they stay in the title fight in the long run.

Meanwhile, Mercedes might once again have a difficult weekend at Imola, given the circuit has often rewarded low drag cars.

The Silver Arrows are currently struggling to fix their porpoising and drag issues. They could face another problematic weekend where they may come under threat from others behind them.