The modern Grand Prix circuit includes a hard chicane at the end of the front straight, referred to as the "Shelton Chicane" in honor of Vanport racing legend Monte Shelton, and involves 12 turns at a length of 1.967 mi (3.166 km).

[3] PIR boasts a Winners' List starring some of the most accomplished open-wheel drivers of all time including Mario Andretti (1985–1986), Emerson Fittipaldi (1989), Michael Andretti (1990–1992), Bobby Rahal (1987), Sébastien Bourdais (2004, 2007), Will Power (2019, 2024), and Álex Palou (2021, 2023).

[5] This occurs primarily during drag races, as unleaded fuel (often alcohol based) is used in major weekends.

PIR is built on the former location of Vanport, Oregon, which was destroyed on Memorial Day, May 30, 1948, when a railroad berm broke and water from the Columbia River flooded the city.

Racers leaving the track unexpectedly could collide with leftover concrete foundations or fall into ponds.

Beginning in 1984, Portland International began hosting the cars and stars of the PPG Indycar World Series, with Al Unser Jr. taking his first win, driving a Cosworth powered March.

Portland is best-remembered as being the site of two of the closest finishes on a road course in Indy car racing history.

The 1999 running saw the first (and as of 2021, the only) time there were more than one African-Americans competing in the same NASCAR top-three division race, with Bill Lester and Bobby Norfleet on the grid.

In September 2018, the Grand Prix of Portland returned after an 11-year hiatus, now an IndyCar Series race.

On December 8, 2022, it was announced that Formula E would race in there with a modified layout in the 2022–23 season instead of Brooklyn Street Circuit.