San Marino Grand Prix
| Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli | |
 | |
| Race information | |
|---|---|
| Number of times held | 52 |
| First held | 1967 |
| Most wins (drivers) |  Michael Schumacher (7) |
| Most wins (constructors) |  Williams Ferrari (8) |
| Circuit length | 4.226 km (2.626 mi) |
| Race length | 308.498 km (191.698 mi) |
| Laps | 73 |
| Last race (2006) | |
| Pole position | |
| |
| Podium | |
| |
| Fastest lap | |
| |
The San Marino Grand Prix was a Formula One championship race. It was held at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari in the town of Imola. Imola is near the Apennine mountains in Italy. The race was first held 1981, and the last race was in 2006. It is named the San Marino Grand Prix after the nearby republic of San Marino.
History[change | change source]
The area by Imola is home to several racing car manufacturers, including Ferrari, Lamborghini, and Maserati. Following the Second World War, the town started a project to improve the local economy. Four local motor racing fans suggested building a new road. The road would link together existing public roads. These road were used by the local car manufacturers to test their new car designs. Construction began in March 1950. The first test run took place two years later when Enzo Ferrari sent a car to the track.
In April 1953, the first motorcycle races took place at Imola, and the first car race took place in June 1954. In April 1963, the first race with Formula One cars took place at Imola. It was a non-championship event, and was won by Jim Clark for Lotus. An additional non-championship event took place at Imola in 1979. This race was won by Niki Lauda for Brabham-Alfa Romeo.
In 1980, the Italian Grand Prix moved from the high-speed Monza circuit to Imola. This was because of a bad crash in 1978. The crash killed the popular Swedish driver Ronnie Peterson. The 1980 race was won by Nelson Piquet for Brabham-Ford. In 1981 the Italian Grand Prix returned to Monza, and Imola hosted the new San Marino Grand Prix, named after the nearby republic of San Marino.
1994[change | change source]
In 1994 there were three serious accidents at Imola.
- During the Friday practice, Rubens Barrichello hit the fence at the Variante Bassa. It was a very hard crash and he was knocked unconscious for a few minutes.
- During the qualifying session on Saturday, Roland Ratzenberger crashed at the Villeneuve Corner. On the lap before he crashed, Roland went over a kerb too quickly which damaged his front wing. This caused his front wing to fail at 190mph, causing him to go into the concrete wall. He hit a concrete barrier wall almost head-on and received a very bad head injury. He was taken to the hospital, but died from injuries.
- In the race on Sunday, Ayrton Senna hit a concrete wall at the high-speed Tamburello Corner. Senna suffered severe head injuries. After he was removed from the car he was air lifted to hospital. He died in hospital after his life support was turned off because it was the only thing keeping him alive. It is still not clear today what caused Senna's crash. The car was too damaged to analyse what caused the crash. For the 1995 race, the Tamburello and Villeneuve corners were changed. They became slower chicanes. The Variante Bassa was also straightened. These crashes started changes at other Formula One circuits. Changes were made to make the sport safer.
Teams had complained about the poor quality of the facilities (buildings and work areas) at Imola. San Marino Grand Prix was dropped from the Formula One championship after 2006. Part of the reason for dropping San Marino was there was another grand prix held in Italy.[1]
Winners of the San Marino Grand Prix[change | change source]
Repeat winners (drivers)[change | change source]
| Wins | Driver | Years won |
|---|---|---|
| 7 | Michael Schumacher | 1994, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006 |
| 3 |  Ayrton Senna | 1988, 1989, 1991 |
 Alain Prost | 1984, 1986, 1993 | |
| 2 | Nigel Mansell | 1987, 1992 |
| Damon Hill | 1995, 1996 |
Repeat winners (constructors)[change | change source]
| Wins | Constructor | Years won |
|---|---|---|
| 8 | Ferrari | 1982, 1983, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006 |
| Williams | 1987, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2001 | |
| 6 | McLaren | 1984, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1998 |
Repeat winners (engine manufacturers)[change | change source]
| Wins | Manufacturer | Years won |
|---|---|---|
| 8 | Ferrari | 1982, 1983, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006 |
| Renault | 1985, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2005 | |
| 4 |  Honda | 1987, 1988, 1989, 1991 |
| 2 |  TAG * | 1984, 1986 |
 Ford ** | 1981, 1994 |
* Built by Porsche
** Built by Cosworth
By year[change | change source]
A pink background indicates an event which was not part of any championship.
Broadcasting[change | change source]
United Kingdom[change | change source]
Deaths[change | change source]
- Roland Ratzenberger, died in a crash at Villeneuve Corner during qualifying for the 1994 grand prix.
- Ayrton Senna, died in a crash at Tamburello while leading the race on May 1, 1994.
References[change | change source]
- ↑ "San Marino loses Grand Prix race". BBC Sport. 2006-08-29. Retrieved 2009-10-21.
Other websites[change | change source]
- San Marino Grand Prix Archived 2005-07-20 at the Wayback Machine
- San Marino Grand Prix Statistics Archived 2011-07-09 at the Wayback Machine