The circuit was designed in 1969; it was built from 1970 and 1972, and inaugurated that year. Its initial length was and only had a small, open pit area. This version of the circuit hosted three editions of the
San Marino motorcycle Grand Prix, from the
1985 season to the
1987 season. In 1993 it was modified for the first time: the track length was increased to , with the possibility to race both the long and the old short loop; moreover, new facilities and new pit garages were built. It was at Misano during the
1993 Italian Grand Prix that the defending 500 cc World Champion
Wayne Rainey's career ended after he fell and suffered a broken spine. Between 1996 and 2001 all facilities were improved further, adding more pits and stands. In 2005, a new access point to the circuit was built, Via
Daijiro Kato, in honor of the late Japanese rider, killed during the
2003 Japanese Grand Prix, whose in-season race home was in the Portoverde
frazione of Misano Adriatico. In order to host again the
World motorcycle championship, the circuit was extensively modified in 2006. The circuit direction was changed to clockwise direction, the track length was brought to , track width has been widened to , facilities were improved, and all security measures have been applied. The first MotoGP race held on the circuit after the modifications was the
2007 San Marino and Rimini Riviera motorcycle Grand Prix, which was won by "home" marque
Ducati. During the 2010
Moto2 event, Japanese rider
Shoya Tomizawa was killed after losing control of his bike and being subsequently struck by both
Scott Redding and
Alex de Angelis. Coincidentally this incident occurred 17 years to the day of Wayne Rainey's career ending incident also at Misano. On 3 November 2011, the circuit owners announced that it would be named after
Marco Simoncelli, an Italian
motorcyclist who died during the
2011 Malaysian Grand Prix in Sepang a week prior. Simoncelli was born in nearby
Cattolica and had lived from childhood in
Coriano. On 8 June 2012 the track's new name was confirmed at the San Marino round of the
Superbike World Championship. ==Layout history==