The Imola 200 (also known as the 200 Miglia) is a motorcycle race held annually at

Imola Imola (; rgn, Jômla or ) is a city and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Bologna, located on the river Santerno, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. The city is traditionally considered the western entrance to the historical ...

. The race originally ran as a modern motorcycle race from 1972 to 1985. In 2010, the Imola 200 Miglia Revival began as a classic bike race.

Background

In response to the popularity of the

Daytona 200 The Daytona 200 is an annual motorcycle road racing competition held in early spring at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. The race was founded in 1937 when it was sanctioned by the American Motorcyclist Associati ...

, it was decided to create a "European Daytona" with the best riders from the Grands Prix, European, American and Italian championships competing together.

Inaugural race

The inaugural race was held in 1972, being won by Paul Smart. He was riding a Ducati 750 Imola Desmo. This bike is considered the first

V-twin engine A V-twin engine, also called a V2 engine, is a two-cylinder piston engine where the cylinders share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration. Although widely associated with motorcycles (installed either transversely or longi ...

with desmodromic valve system for Ducati.

Influence

This race was considered a major step in the notoriety of Ducati.

Imola 200 race results

Source:

References

{{Reflist Motorsport competitions in Italy Imola Recurring sporting events established in 1972 1972 establishments in Italy