The circuit's origins trace to 1967, when Dr. Nelson Luiz Barro, a physician from Caxias do Sul who had relocated to Guaporé, began inspiring a local passion for motorsport. Barro himself raced a Simca Chambord carrying the number 64 and eventually won the state championship. On 1 September 1969 he and a group of enthusiasts formally established the Guaporense Racing Association — Associação Guaporense de Automobilismo, universally known as AGA — the body that has managed the facility ever since.
The group identified the city's disused aerodrome as the ideal site. With backing from mayor Otolip Dalbosco and using the aerodrome's two perpendicular runways as the skeleton of the layout, they built a circuit from oil-impregnated dirt in just over three months. On 21 December 1969 the track was inaugurated with an event that drew 72 cars from across the state, receiving formal approval from the state motorsport authority. The perpendicular runway geometry produced the distinctive "T" shape that remains visible in the circuit's footprint to this day.
The success of those early events encouraged AGA to pursue a permanent asphalt surface. With financial and material support drawn from municipal, state, and federal government sources, neighbouring municipalities, private sponsors, and the Army, a proper tarmac circuit was completed on 17 October 1976. The occasion was marked by the fifth race of the 1976 Brazilian Formula Ford Championship.
International status followed on 17 November 1985, when the circuit hosted the tenth round of the South American Formula Three Championship, cementing its reputation beyond regional competition.
The Autódromo Internacional de Guaporé is notable for its accentuated corner banking, with many bends carrying more than 10 degrees of cant. The main straight stretches approximately 800 m in length and 17 m in width, making the track exceptionally fast by Brazilian regional standards. The tunnel corner — named for the access tunnel that crosses the track near that point — is one of the circuit's defining features.
The high speeds generated by the banking historically compounded safety concerns, as the track lacked sufficient containment barriers and run-off areas at several corners. Following a lengthy resurfacing project completed in late 2010, AGA undertook consultations with specialists to address those issues in subsequent phases of development.
The circuit's support infrastructure includes 40 pit lane garages with large adjacent unloading ramps, a refuelling station, tyre repair facilities, and a VIP area positioned above the pit lane. The judges' tower houses a press room, sign-up area, administration office, and officials' room, all scaled to accommodate medium-sized events. Two restaurants operate on site alongside a two-floor bathroom block shared by teams and VIP guests.
The circuit's medical centre occupies a separate building beside the pit lane exit, with a terrace offering sightlines over the entire track surface. Mobile ICUs are mandatory at all events, supplementing the limited permanent medical equipment. Internal circuit access passes through a tunnel beneath the track.
Spectators traditionally congregate on the hillside overlooking the Radiator Corner, where camping, barbecue facilities, and the Radiator Cabin restaurant provide a festival atmosphere during race weekends. When larger crowds attend, temporary grandstands are erected on the outer side of corner two and along the main straight.
The annual Fórmula Truck round became both the circuit's showcase event and its primary revenue source. However, the sustained load from heavy trucks progressively degraded the asphalt layer, eventually compromising safety to the point where higher-profile championships such as Stock Car Brasil declined to visit. Even drag racing events were scaled back because surface irregularities on the main straight prevented competitors from running the standard quarter-mile distance, forcing a shorter eighth-mile format.
After years of seeking funding, AGA finally replaced the asphalt in late 2010, reopening the track to a broader calendar. Ongoing challenges include the restoration and modernisation of the pit lane area, continued safety upgrades, and competition from newer facilities in Rio Grande do Sul, including the Velopark complex near Porto Alegre. Guaporé's limited tourist infrastructure adds further difficulty to attracting national-level championships back to the circuit.