Imola - Timetable, schedule and information for Emilia Romagna GP

Formula 1

Imola - Timetable, schedule and information for Emilia Romagna GP

All the information you need ahead of round two of the 2021 F1 season

Ewan Gale

Monday 12 April 2021 16:54 Updated: 14:47

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Formula 1 heads to Imola for the second successive season after a successful return to the calendar last November.

The daintily named Formula 1 Pirelli Gran Premio Del Made in Italy e Dell'Emilia Romagna Grand Prix plays host to round two of the 2021 season, where Mercedes will again aim to usurp the hard-charging Red Bulls and take victory.

Lewis Hamilton will enter the race buoyed by his win at the Italian venue five months ago, although Max Verstappen was on pace with both Mercedes drivers before a tyre failure forfeited a second-place finish for the Dutchman.

Imola's history

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The Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari held the Italian Grand Prix in 1980, before changing its name to the San Marino Grand Prix for 1981 through to 2006 due to Monza returning to the calendar.

After a 14-year hiatus, the circuit returned for the Emilia Romagna GP for a new stint in grand prix racing. The circuit has been extensively changed over the years in bids to aid overtaking and improve safety.

The biggest change was to the Tamburello corner at the start of the lap, with a chicane introduced following the death of Ayrton Senna at the 1994 event, where Roland Ratzenberger also succumbed to injuries sustained in a separate incident.

Another chicane was added before the Tosa hairpin to further reduce corner entry speeds in the first sector.

The final chicane was removed ahead of the circuit's return last season, elongating the pit straight to run between Tamburello and the final corner - Rivazza.

Alonso vs Schumacher - 2005

Who can forget the epic duel between Fernando Alonso and Michael Schumacher at the 2005 San Marino Grand Prix?

When the German made his final pit-stop, Alonso's Renault stood between the seven-time champion and victory.

Schumacher tried everything to get past Alonso, even running side by side through Rivazza as the pair ran nose-to-tail for the final three laps.

The Spanish driver would emerge victorious before going on to claim the first of two world championships.

Imola timetable

This weekend's schedule differs slightly from last season's event that trialled a two-day weekend as part of its attempts to freshen up the sport's format.

Whereas last year saw drivers and teams have just a single 90-minute practice session on Saturday morning ahead of qualifying, there will be the traditional structure of two practices on Friday, with a third session preceding qualifying on Saturday with the race following on Sunday.

F1 has changed the format for every race this season, with session durations reduced by 30 minutes on Fridays and race start times moving back 10 minutes and so now beginning on the hour.

In addition for this weekend, as a mark of respect for the funeral of Prince Philip, the times have been altered slightly across Friday and Saturday.

Please note: all times below are BST. CET one hour ahead.

Friday 16th April

First free practice - 10:00-11:00am Second free practice - 13:30-14:30pm

Saturday 17th April

Third free practice - 10:00am-11:00pm Qualifying - 13:00-14:00pm

Sunday 18th April

Race - 14:00pm