The course was opened in 1990 as a private motor racing track for the wealthy. Soon, it hosted its first race, staged by veteran
British drivers. In and , the TI Circuit hosted the
Formula One Pacific Grand Prix; both events were won by
Michael Schumacher in his early title-winning years. This race made Japan one of only nine countries to ever host more than one Formula One event in the same year (
Autopolis was planned to host a second Japanese race in , but it never came to fruition). It was discontinued primarily due to its location in a remote area of the country. The event was also planned to host a race of the
1996 International Touring Car Championship season in August to replace the F1 race, but the race was instead moved to
Suzuka Circuit, held in November. In 1999, defending
JGTC GT300 champion
Shingo Tachi was killed when he tested a GT500 Toyota Supra after he suffered from a technical failure that prevented him from slowing down for the first turn. Although there was no driver fatality in the JGTC or
Super GT race events beforehand, the incident occurred almost a year after
Tetsuya Ota's near-fatal, fiery accident at
Fuji Speedway. In March 2003, the Tanaka International Company, parent company of the official circuit owner TI Circuit Company, applied for civil rehabilitation. After the application, Unimat Holding Co., Ltd. announced that it would financially support the TI Circuit Company in keeping the facility open. The company was renamed Okayama International Circuit Co., Ltd. on 1 May 2004, and the circuit was renamed Okayama International Circuit on 1 January 2005. On 26 October 2008, the circuit hosted a round of the
Formula V6 Asia and
FIA World Touring Car Championship. The
WTCC race was the first FIA world championship race since 1995. However, it was announced on 21 June 2010 that
Suzuka Circuit would host the Japan round of the 2011 WTCC season instead of the Okayama International Circuit. On 3 March 2012, Unimat sold the circuit to Aska Corporation, an auto parts manufacturing company. ==Events==