- Semi-permanent circuit in Madrid city centre replaces Imola on ten-year deal
- Statement insists ‘this will not be the end’ of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix
Imola mayor Marco Panieri and Emilia-Romagna president Michele di Pascale have released a joint statement following Formula One’s decision to drop Imola from the 2026 schedule, expressing confidence that this will not mark the end of the race.
Formula One released its calendar for next season on 10th June, which features the all-new Spanish Grand Prix on a semi-permanent circuit in Madrid. As such, there was no room for Imola to continue as a host.
‘The provisional calendar of the Formula 1 Grand Prix for the 2026 season has been announced, from which Imola is excluded,’ read the joint statement from Panieri and di Pascale.
‘This is news that we were aware of and that understandably generates questions, disappointment and a sense of bitterness on the outside, because in recent years our territory has proven to be able to host an extraordinary event with record numbers, capable of combining international prestige, promotion of Made in Italy, of the Motor Valley and concrete returns for the economic and tourist system of our land and of the entire country.
‘In fact, the Grand Prix in Imola was one of the most loved and appreciated by fans and drivers, as was also forcefully demonstrated in the days following the event, and its uniqueness in the world was evident: that of uniting the race on the track with the surrounding territory, starting from a historic centre to be experienced.’
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However, the organisers are bullish that this year’s race won’t be the final Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, emphasising that ‘this news is by no means the final word’.
The statement continued: ‘For the region and the territory, the path undertaken by Imola and the Gran Premio del Made in Italy e dell’Emilia-Romagna does not end here. We are and were aware of the complexity of the dynamics linked to the calendar and the picture was very complicated from the beginning.
‘The contract signed in 2021 – which few believed possible at the time – envisaged the stable return of the Gran Premio to Imola until 2025.
‘As the Emilia-Romagna Region and the Municipality of Imola, among the promoting partners, we have truly done everything that could be done in this phase. We have highlighted several times, on several occasions, in different ways, to all the actors involved, the importance and strategic nature of the issue.
‘We did it with transparency, clarity, maximum availability and institutional collaboration.’
BlackBook says…
Imola’s return to the Formula One calendar in 2020 was prompted by the Covid-19 pandemic. The series packed in 17 races in the final six months of that year, with the majority of events held in Europe. This also saw unexpected returns for the likes of the Nürburgring, Mugello and Istanbul Park.
However, with the effects of the pandemic still keenly felt at the start of the 2021 season, an intended return to the normal schedule ground to a halt after the races in Australia and China were postponed. Imola stepped in at short notice to host the second round of the 2021 season in mid-April.
This move generated considerable goodwill between Formula One and Imola, which likely contributed to the decision to grant the circuit a long-term contract through to the end of this season. Imola reportedly paid just €20 million (US$22.8 million) per season – the lowest fee of any Grand Prix – so its inclusion was certainly not financially motivated.
It also could’ve helped that Imola is the hometown of Stefano Domenicali, the current president and chief executive of Formula One. Still, that goodwill could only take the event so far before a higher-paying alternative came along.
Ultimately, money makes the world go round in Formula One and it’s the lowest-paying tracks that are most at risk of falling off the calendar. No matter how committed organisers are to a return, this may prove difficult given the increasingly competitive race to host a Grand Prix.
Looking ahead, Imola’s best hope of staying connected to Formula One may lie in becoming a rotational option alongside Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps.
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