The Emilia Romagna Grand Prix is scheduled to take place from May 19 to May 21 at the historic Imola circuit – how many DRS zones here?
F1 authorities made a number of modifications to various circuits on the Formula One Calendar before the start of the 2023 season.
Changes in DRS zones were implemented in Bahrain, Jeddah, Baku and Miami but there are no such plans for the Imola circuit, which is scheduled to host the Emilia Romagna GP. The Imola track will continue to have a single DRS zone like previous editions and no changes in the track layout have been made before this weekend’s race.
Imola is one of the very few tracks in the F1 calendar which has just ONE DRS Zone. Ever since the Emilia Romagna GP was first held in its latest avatar in 2020, F1 has altered the length of the DRS zone each year. However, the fourth edition of the GP won’t witness any such change and the DRS zone will lie between the start/finish line towards the braking zone for Tamburello, officially identified as Turn 2. Meanwhile, the detection point lies around halfway between the Variante Alta chicane and Rivazza 1.
F1 drivers have often voiced their support for the addition of a second DRS zone in Imola but the authorities do not seem to have any such plans. Overtaking won’t be easy at Imola and drivers will have to adapt to the circuit quickly in order to use the layout to their advantage.
What is unique about the Imola Circuit?
The Imola circuit is a historic venue in the F1 calendar. The circuits official name is ‘Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari’, but commonly known as ‘Imola’, after the town in which it is located. The circuit is named after Ferrari’s late founder Enzo Ferrari and his son Alfredo ‘Dino’ Ferrari.
The Imola circuit recently extended its hosting rights and will be on the F1 calendar at least till 2025. Imola’s first F1 event was the Italian Grand Prix in 1980 and then became the venue of San Marino Grand Prix from 1981-2006. The circuit made a return to F1 as the venue for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in 2020.
The unique feature of the track in Imola is that is one of the very few international circuits to run in an anti-clockwise direction. It has a total length of 4.909 kilometers including 19 turns. It is an FIA Grade I licensed circuit that was first opened for the public in 1953 and supports a total capacity of 78,000 people. The circuit has undergone major revisions since 2007 and is quite different from its older version.
The old pit garages and paddocks have been demolished and completely rebuilt while the pit lane has been extended and resurfaced. Faster timings have been recorded in the revamped circuit. The official lap record for the current Grand Prix Circuit layout is 1:15.484 set by Lewis Hamilton in 2020.
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