The event has had a fragmented history, appearing and disappearing from the championship schedule across several decades. The inaugural San Marino Grand Prix was held in 1981 at the Autodromo Dino Ferrari in Imola. The race moved to the Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello for 1982, returned to Imola in 1983, and shifted back to Mugello in 1984. From 1985 onwards the race settled at the Circuito Internazionale Santa Monica in Misano Adriatico, the venue that would eventually become its permanent home.
The round was dropped from the calendar after 1987, then restored in 1991 at Mugello. It disappeared again in 1992 amid the FIM–IRTA scheduling disputes of that period, returned to Mugello in 1993, and was then absent again from 1994. A thirteen-year gap followed before the San Marino Grand Prix was reinstated in 2007 at Misano, where it has remained continuously ever since. The circuit was renamed the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli in 2012 in tribute to the Italian rider who died at the 2011 Malaysian Grand Prix.
The Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli is a 4.226-kilometre permanent racing circuit on the Adriatic coast in Misano Adriatico, in the province of Rimini. The circuit's coastal location and the proximity of the tourist resort area of Rimini give the event its "Riviera di Rimini" suffix. The compact layout features a mix of tight technical corners and short straights that rewards riders who excel at late braking and traction out of slow turns. The circuit is contracted to host the San Marino round until at least 2031.
The official race title has changed frequently in line with its Italian commercial partnerships. Early editions in the 1980s were branded Gran Premio di San Marino or Gran Premio San Marino without a title sponsor. After the 2007 return, successive naming-rights holders included Cinzano, Aperol, TIM, Tribul Mastercard, Octo, Lenovo, Gryfyn, and Red Bull. From 2025 the event has been known as the Red Bull Grand Prix of San Marino and the Rimini Riviera.
The San Marino Grand Prix is one of the few MotoGP events to carry a name that does not correspond to the country in which it is held, a quirk that reflects the broader Italian motorsport geography and the long-standing convention of naming races for the nearest recognizable landmark. Its permanent Misano home has established a strong link between the circuit and the Adriatic racing community, and the renaming of the venue in honour of Marco Simoncelli has given the event an added layer of emotional significance for Italian motorcycle racing fans.