Formula 1 organizers have officially announced the cancellation of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in Italy. F1 would have started its triple-header European tour with the Imola Grand Prix this weekend, but northern Italy has been struggling with heavy rain and flooding this week.
Emilia Romagna was labeled a red zone earlier in the week, and today, the various teams were denied access to the Imola circuit because it was still flooded.
"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," F1 said in a statement published on various social media platforms and its official website. "It would not be right to put further pressure on the local authorities and emergency services at this difficult time."
The decision not to race was not taken lightly. Formula 1, the president of the FIA, the promoter, the mayor of the city, and the various authorities involved in hosting an F1 race were involved in talks.
"It is such a tragedy to see what has happened to Imola and Emilia-Romagna, the town and region that I grew up in, and my thoughts and prayers are with the victims of the flooding and the families and communities affected," said Stefano Domenicali, President and CEO of Formula 1.
"My thoughts and those of the entire FIA family are with those affected by the terrible situation in the Emilia-Romagna region. The safety of everyone involved and recovery efforts are the top priority at this time," said FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem.
The situation is dire for the Formula 1 teams as their gear is already on the ground. Being banned from the track means there's no way of recovering the equipment. Don't be surprised to see the championship-leading RB19 float down the road. Lando Norris recently took delivery of a brand-new McLaren 765LT Spider in Woking, which he probably drove down to Italy for the weekend. Let's hope that beauty is out of harm's way, but the car can float away for all we care. It's replaceable. Lando isn't.
While we're bummed about missing Imola this year, we agree that the focus should be on the people who call northern Italy home. It makes complete sense to focus all of the government's available resources on their safety instead of a race.
In an interesting turn of events, what would have been a record-setting year for Formula 1 is now just another year. There likely isn't space in the calendar to return to Imola, and the Chinese Grand Prix was canceled earlier this year. That takes the 2023 season down to 22 races, matching the 2022 season.
