STATISTICS CORNER: Schumacher is still the king of Imola
Seven-time F1 champion Michael Schumacher is still the most successful driver at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, but three-time F1 champion Ayrton Senna has the most pole positions to his name. F1Technical’s senior writer Balazs Szabo picks out the most important facts from Imola.
Imola first held a Formula 1 race in 1980, the only time the Italian Grand Prix was not run in Monza. From the following year until 2006, it was home to the San Marino Grand Prix. It returned to the calendar in 2020, as the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix.
In 2023, the race had to be cancelled because of serious flooding in the region, by which time the slogan “Made in Italy” was added to its name.
Michael Schumacher is the king of Imola, having won there no fewer than seven times. Equal in second place on the list of winners with three apiece, are two men who were always great rivals, namely Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna, along with the current world champion Max Verstappen, who has won the last three editions.
With eight to his name, Senna has the most pole positions, followed by Schumacher on five and René Arnoux on three. With 12 podium finishes, Schumacher tops this list, with twice as many as Prost on six, followed by Senna and Gerhard Berger in third place, with five each.
As for the teams, Ferrari and Williams have the most wins here with 8, ahead of McLaren on 6, the latter having the greatest number of pole positions (8), ahead of Ferrari (6) and Williams (4). The same three teams have the most podiums in the order, Ferrari on 25, McLaren on 22 and Williams on 15.
