Formula 1 returns to Imola, home of the darkest weekend in racing history

As Formula 1 returns to Imola this weekend, memories of the sport's darkest race remain etched in the mind's eye almost 30 years later.

Two tragic deaths occurred at the Imola circuit on the weekend of the 1994 San Marino GP, named after the nearby republic as there was already an Italian Grand Prix in Monza.

On Saturday, 30 April, Roland Ratzenberger lost his life during qualifying. The San Marino GP would have been only his second race in F1.

After Ratzenberger's crash, drivers were calling for the race weekend to be scrapped. The sport's decisionmakers opted for the show to go on.

More heartache and sadness would ensue.

Goodbye, Senna

With a heavy cloud hanging over the remainder of the weekend, Williams' Ayrton Senna put his FW16 on pole in qualifying, besting the Benetton-Ford of Michael Schumacher.

Up until the start of the race on 1 May, drivers were still calling for the race not to continue. Senna, having joined Williams for the 1994 season, felt uneasy driving an unpredictable car in the palpable gloom - despite having put it on pole by more than 0.5 seconds.

READ: F1 Gold | How safety in the sport has changed since Senna's death in 1994

A few laps into the race, the safety car was deployed, and racing resumed at the end of Lap 5. Senna crossed the start/finish line for Lap 6 with Schumacher hot on his heels and maintained the lead into Lap 7.

Hitting speeds up to 305km/h down the main straight, the drivers torpedoed towards Turn 1, the Tamburello left-hander.

But Senna's Williams would not turn, sending the driver into the unprotected concrete barrier at a speed of around 210km/h. Senna hit the brakes to reduce speed, but it wasn't enough, and he was killed upon impact.

A post-race investigation revealed that the