Riverside 500—California (January 21st)

Once again Gurney won the 500-mile race for NASCAR saloon cars on the 2½-mile road circuit at Riverside, this being his fifth victory in six years. He was driving a 1968 factory Ford V8 Torino, and Fords netted the first four places in this long saloon-car race, contested by a mixture of Grand Prix drivers, USAC oval-track drivers and NASCAR stock-car drivers.