The first San Marino Grand Prix was held at Imola in 1979, a week after the Italian Grand Prix. It was a non-championship event, as Formula One used to adhere to the rule that there was only one race per country, with only the odd exception.

The track was built in the 1950’s and it was originally 3.1 miles in length. It rarely hosted any major events, and as with a lot of the other new circuits appearing in F1, it had to be reconstructed to suit.

Niki Lauder won the first championship race that was held in 1980, when after some political manoeuvring, it saw the Italian Grand Prix held here, instead of Monza. From that year forward, to solve the political unrest, Italy has hosted two GP events. The track is immensely popular with the drivers, set in wooded countryside, featuring wonderful up and down sweeps.

Imola has seen its fair share of dramas, starting back in 1982, when a feud started between Didier Pironi, and Giles Villeneuve, to 1987 and Nelson Piquet’s massive accident during qualifying. Sad to say, the one event that Imola will always be remembered for was the tragic death of the late, great Ayrton Senna in 1994.

Michael Schumacher won the 2000 event, even though McLaren driver, Mika Hakkinen took pole position. The Finn didn’t finish far behind the German, claiming second place while teammate David Coulthard took third.