The circuit is named after Enzo Ferrari, founder of the Ferrari car company (1898–1988), and his son Alfredo "Dino" Ferrari (1932–1956). It opened as a semi-permanent venue in 1953 under the name Autodromo di Imola, was renamed the Autodromo Dino Ferrari between 1957 and 1988, and adopted its current official name thereafter. The first races held at Imola in April 1953 were motorcycle events; the first car race followed in June 1954.
Imola's early configuration featured no chicanes, producing long flat-out runs between corners. The circuit hosted a non-championship Formula One race in April 1963, won by Jim Clark for Lotus, and another in 1979, won by Niki Lauda for Brabham-Alfa Romeo. The track entered the Formula One World Championship calendar in 1980 when it hosted the Italian Grand Prix, won by Nelson Piquet — the first time since 1948 that Monza did not host that event. From 1981 to 2006 Imola held the San Marino Grand Prix as a permanent calendar fixture.
Safety concerns accumulated throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, centred on the high-speed Tamburello corner — a flat-out left-hander with a concrete wall on the outside and the Santerno river beyond it. In 1987 Nelson Piquet crashed heavily there after a tyre failure; in 1989 Gerhard Berger's Ferrari caught fire after impact at Tamburello at roughly 300 km/h, though he survived. The fatal accidents of Roland Ratzenberger during Saturday qualifying and Ayrton Senna on race day during the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix prompted immediate circuit modifications. Tamburello was converted into a left-right-left chicane, Villeneuve corner was similarly slowed, and Variante Bassa was reshaped. The kerbs at Variante Alta were also revised before the 2006 Grand Prix.
Formula One left Imola after 2006. The circuit owners undertook extensive reconstruction — pit facilities, paddock, and pitlane were demolished and rebuilt, with the project overseen by Hermann Tilke. The track received FIA Grade 1 homologation in 2011. Formula One returned in 2020 under the name Emilia Romagna Grand Prix and remained on the calendar through 2022, 2024, and 2025. The 2023 race was cancelled due to severe flooding in the region.
The current circuit measures 4.909 km. Key sections include the Tamburello chicane at the beginning of the lap, the Villeneuve corner leading into Tosa hairpin, the twisting Piratella section, the Acqua Minerali complex, the Variante Alta at the hilltop, and the two Rivazza corners. A bypass for the Variante Bassa chicane allows cars to run flat from Rivazza to Tamburello, restoring some of the original circuit's flowing nature for car racing, though the chicane remains in use during motorcycle events.
The official lap record under the current Grand Prix layout is 1:15.484, set by Lewis Hamilton during the 2020 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
Motorcycle racing is woven into the circuit's founding identity. Imola hosted Italian motorcycle Grands Prix in 1969, 1972, 1974, 1975, 1977, 1979, and 1988, as well as San Marino motorcycle Grands Prix in 1981 and 1983. The Superbike World Championship has held rounds at Imola from 2001 to 2006, 2009 to 2019, and from 2023 onward. The FIM Motocross World Championship has concluded its season at Imola since 2018. The circuit also hosted City of Imola motorcycle Grands Prix between 1996 and 1999.
Three fatal accidents have occurred at the circuit: Sauro Pazzaglia during qualifying for the 1981 San Marino motorcycle Grand Prix; Roland Ratzenberger during qualifying for the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix after a front wing failure at Villeneuve corner; and Ayrton Senna during the 1994 race after his steering column broke at Tamburello.
The circuit is regarded as one of Italy's most important motorsport venues and is considered a home race for Scuderia Ferrari, given the team's base in nearby Maranello. Its complex history — encompassing the golden years of Formula One, the trauma of 1994, major reconstruction, and a successful return to the top flight of motorsport — gives it a singular place in the sport's heritage. The circuit also hosts the Mostra Scambio vintage vehicle exposition each September, a cultural fixture since 1981.