Your Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix Guide

It’s Grand Prix time once more, and while behind the scenes, the silly season continues in the paddock, on the track, we’re heading to Europe for the first time in the 2024 season. Our destination is Imola for the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix. Ahead of what should be an exciting weekend, we’re going to pick apart the homage to the fallen, the endless stream of upgrades, and a worrying development for Kevin Magnussen. Let’s get stuck in.

Honouring Senna and Ratzenberger

Where else could we begin other than discussing the elephant in the room? Any trip to Imola always evokes powerful memories for those who witnessed the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix (as it was then known). That fateful weekend not only took the life of Austrian Roland Ratzenberger in qualifying, but it would also claim the life of one of Formula 1’s greatest champions and showmen, the immortal Ayrton Senna. We’ve already seen tributes but expect the crowd to honour the fallen this weekend, as they do every time that we visit this fated circuit.

Upgrades, Upgrades, Upgrades

The Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix promises to be exciting for another reason – upgrades, and plenty of them. Almost every team is bringing their latest toys to the track. Aston Martin leads the way with upgrades, sporting a new front wing, nose, body, floor, diffuser – you name it. Such hefty upgrades will undoubtedly eat into their budget, so they can only hope the upgrades do the job at Imola.

Ferrari is also bringing updates, most notably a new rear wing and engine cover. Mercedes seems optimistic, too, with both Hamilton and Russell talking up their upgrades, which include floor fences, a new rear wing, beam wing, front corner, and floor body. Mercedes upgrades always seem to improve the car, but they are still finding issues. Either the car excels in the high-speed or the low-speed corners—seldom both.

Red Bull also brought new upgrades on the weekend Adrian Newey announced he would likely join another F1 team, and Haas also has new toys to play with. Smaller upgrade packages are expected for all the remaining teams, too, with floor parts scheduled for Sauber, Williams, and Alpine, while McLaren is introducing a new rear wing and beam wing.

Magnussen One Penalty Away from Suspension

Who will win at Imola is anyone’s guess. However, we do have another prediction for this weekend. After his antics in Miami, Kevin Magnussen is now just two penalty points away from becoming the first Formula 1 driver to receive a suspension since the Super License points scheme was introduced. If he accrues additional penalties, he will miss a race, with Ferrari’s Ollie Bearman anticipated to replace him. Bearman is also taking part in FP1 this weekend.

With the next race scheduled for Monaco and cars unable to pass, the race usually turns into a procession. It may serve K-Mag well to slap on those points now and miss the following race for Haas since it won’t matter much to the team. Of course, we’re not advocating he gives someone a tap (especially at Imola) or goes speeding in the pitlane. Still, it’s food for thought for any of you who fancy a punt on Magnussen being suspended sooner rather than later.

Who Will Win at Imola?

After the last race, it is tempting to say Lando. That would be the romantic option. Believers in fairytales might imagine a Fernando or Lewis win via their respective upgrades. After all, Red Bull struggled in Miami. Imola is a different beast entirely, though. We fully expect Red Bull to romp home, although an impressive Carlos Sainz (or Charles Leclerc) and their upgraded Ferraris will make excellent outsider picks if you fancy longer odds.