Imola Paddock Diary: Vettel leads F1 drivers’ Senna tribute

IMOLA, Italy — Formula One returns to Imola this weekend, one year on from the heavy floods that resulted in the cancelation of the 2023 event.

The sleepy town in Northern Italy feels worlds apart from the gaudy surrounds of Miami’s Hard Rock stadium, where Lando Norris kicked off the extensive celebrations of his first F1 victory two weeks ago (more on the celebrations later). The contrast between the two venues perfectly sums up the extremes of modern Formula One, as the sport continues to extend new frontiers in the United States while retaining an increasingly loose foothold in its European heartland.

Nestled in the foothills of the Apennine Mountains, just south of the vast and fertile plains of the Po Valley, the town of Imola can trace its roots back to 82 B.C. and the Roman settlement Cornelii Forum — one of many trading posts along the arrow-straight Via Emilia linking Piacenza to the west and Rimini on Italy’s Adriatic coast.

Since 1953 A.D., the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari has enveloped a park just south of Imola’s center and remains a key feature of the town. It is a circuit steeped in motorsport history — some glorious, some tragic — and one where the link to F1’s past eras almost feels tangible.

Reminders of the venue’s most infamous race weekend — the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix — are more prevalent than ever this year as F1 respectfully marks 30 years since the deaths of Roland Ratzenberger and Ayrton Senna at Imola. The legacy of Senna — a three-time world champion and one of the sport’s most prominent historical figures — seems to grow stronger each year, and on Thursday’s media day all the drivers came together to pay tribute.

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Senna track run

Steady rain abated on Thursday evening as members of the paddock convened on Imola’s pit straight to pay tribute to Senna and Ratzenberger.

The Senna Foundation had teamed up with four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel to organize a track run of the three-mile circuit — open to any members of the paddock wanting to attend. F1, F2 and F3 drivers all lined up for photo alongside helmets of Senna and Ratzenberger at the front of the grid, before Vettel, who has recently launched items of Senna merchandise to raise money for the foundation, led a few hundred people off on the run.

The pack stopped at Tamburello, the…