The circuit was built as part of a broader series of major Malaysian infrastructure projects under Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad's government during the 1990s, with its construction closely tied to the establishment of Putrajaya as the country's new administrative capital. Tilke designed the main circuit to run clockwise over 5.543 km, characterised by sweeping high-speed corners, wide straights ranging from 16 to 22 metres across, and an unusual configuration in which a 0.927 km back straight is separated from the pit straight by a single tight hairpin. The tropical Malaysian climate gives the circuit a reputation for unpredictable weather, with races frequently interrupted by heavy rain.
The layout includes several distinct corner sequences. Turns 5 and 6, known as the Genting Curve, form a long, high-speed chicane generating substantial G-force loads. Turns 7 and 8, the KLIA Curve, comprise a double-apex right-hander. The back straight runs into Turn 15, a left-handed hairpin, before connecting back to the main straight. The circuit was comprehensively resurfaced in 2016 with several corners reprofiled to emphasise mechanical grip over aerodynamic downforce, including raising the final corner by approximately one metre.
Two shorter configurations exist alongside the full layout: the north circuit, covering 2.706 km through the first half of the main track, and the south circuit, at 2.609 km, which uses the back straight as its pit straight. Kart racing and motocross facilities complete the site.
The Malaysian Grand Prix was a fixture on the Formula One calendar from 1999 through 2017, a run of nineteen races. The event was inaugurated on 17 October 1999, with Sepang quickly establishing itself as a challenging and visually distinctive venue on the world championship schedule. Rising hosting fees and declining ticket sales placed the race's future under threat from the mid-2010s, and the contract lapsed after the 2017 edition.
Sepang has been a continuous host of the Malaysian Motorcycle Grand Prix within the MotoGP World Championship. The first Malaysian motorcycle Grand Prix at the circuit was held on 20 April 1999, inaugurated on the same day Mahathir Mohamad formally opened the venue to motorcycle competition.
On 23 October 2011, Italian MotoGP rider Marco Simoncelli died following a crash at Turn 11 on the second lap of the Shell Advance Malaysian Grand Prix. The race was abandoned after the incident, marking one of the most tragic events in modern Grand Prix motorcycle racing history.
Beyond its Formula One and MotoGP calendars, Sepang has hosted a broad range of international series including Super GT, the Superbike World Championship, the Sepang 12 Hours, and the Intercontinental GT Challenge's Sepang 12 Hours in 2016. The circuit regularly stages the Malaysia Merdeka Endurance Race and has hosted rounds of the Asian Le Mans Series, GP2, and A1 Grand Prix among many others.
The circuit was previously known as the Sepang F1 Circuit before being renamed the Sepang International Circuit. On 31 October 2023, Petronas acquired commercial naming rights for a three-year period, giving rise to the designation Petronas Sepang International Circuit for commercial purposes.
Sepang International Circuit established Malaysia as a credible home of world-class motorsport for nearly two decades. The facility's loss of the Formula One race in 2017 reflected broader economic pressures on Asian grands prix, but the circuit has retained significant relevance through MotoGP, endurance racing, and a diverse regional calendar. The tragedy of Marco Simoncelli's death at Sepang in 2011 remains one of the defining and most sorrowful moments in the circuit's history.