After extremely heavy inclement weather forced teams away from the track earlier this week, Formula 1 announced today that the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Imola will not take place this weekend.
The Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Imola will not take place this weekend after continued concerns about the weather and related instability in the region. The Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari’s paddock was previously closed to Formula 1 staff on Tuesday, and they were again warned to stay away on Wednesday as the rain continued to fall heavily.
Local government officials and the race’s organisers made the choice despite Italy’s most severe red weather warnings for flooding and landslides, as well as the fact that other areas of the region have already been ravaged.
Formula 1 Issue a Statement
In a joint statement by Formula 1, the president of the FIA and authorities in the Emilia-Romagna region, they stated:
“The Formula 1 community wants to send its thoughts to the people and communities affected by the recent events in the Emilia-Romagna region. We also want to pay tribute to the work of the emergency services who are doing everything they can to help those in need.
Following discussions between Formula 1, the President of the FIA, the competent authorities – including the relevant Ministers, the President of the Automobile Club of Italy, the President of Emilia-Romagna Region, the Mayor of the City and the promoter – the decision has been taken not to proceed with the Grand Prix weekend at Imola.
The decision has been taken because it is not possible to safely hold the event for our fans, the teams and our personnel and it is the right and responsible thing to do given the situation faced by the towns and cities in the region. It would not be right to put further pressure on the local authorities and emergency services at this difficult time.”
With the race not taking place this weekend, the prevailing question is whether the race will be rescheduled. While it is disappointing that the race will not go ahead on Sunday, it seems very unlikely that the race will be slotted into the calendar anywhere else because, simply, there isn’t any room. Originally scheduled to the the first in a tripleheader, Formula 1 head to Monaco next weekend (May 26th-28th) and the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya the following week (June 2nd-4th). There is an option to slot the race into the July schedule but that would create a situation where there would be five race weekends in a row. Another option is to return from the summer break a week early but reports suggest that there is little appetite amongst teams to do that.
The more likely scenario is that this year’s F1 calendar will be a race lighter with no Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix in 2023.
F1 Drivers Share Words of Support
In what must be a disappointing turn of events for those scheduled to take place in the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, there has been a swell of support for the decision from the drivers.
Should any updates be provided about a potential rescheduling of this race, we will, of course, present that information to you as soon as possible. In the meantime, our thoughts are with those struggling in Northern Italy.
What do you think of the cancellation of the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.
