1968 South African Grand Prix

The championship year opens at Kyalami on New Year’s Day — only the second time the South African Grand Prix has appeared on the World Championship calendar. The first six grid positions are filled entirely by previous or future world champions, though defending champion Denny Hulme lines up only ninth in his first race for McLaren, having moved from Brabham over the winter.

Entrants

The field carries the most visible sign of the FIA’s decision to lift sponsorship restrictions: South African privateer team Gunston enters a private Brabham for John Love and an LDS for Sam Tingle, the cars painted in the livery of their Gunston cigarette sponsors. It is the first time in Formula One history that a team has painted their car in a sponsor’s colours rather than national racing colours. Italian driver Andrea de Adamich and South African Basil van Rooyen both make their World Championship debuts.

Milestones

Jim Clark arrives tied with Juan Manuel Fangio’s all-time record of 24 Grand Prix victories. A win here would make him the most successful driver in Formula One history, more than a decade after Fangio set the mark.