The writing was on the wall for the first European round of the season after extreme rainfall caused severe floods throughout the Emilia Romagna region, including parts of the Imola circuit's paddock. Following crunch talks between F1, the FIA and the local authorities, the decision was taken on Wednesday to call off this weekend's event, so all focus could go to restoring infrastructure and freeing up medical services to help the affected communities.
F1's official statement read: "Following discussions between Formula 1, the President of the FIA, the competent authorities including the relevant Ministers, the President of the Automobile Club of Italy, the President of Emilia Romagna Region, the Mayor of the City and the promoter the decision has been taken not to proceed with the Grand Prix weekend in Imola.
