1973 Winston Western 500
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 1 of 28 in the 1973 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
|
Layout of Riverside International Raceway (1969-1988 version) | |||
| Date | January 21, 1973 | ||
| Official name | Winston Western 500 | ||
| Location | Riverside International Raceway, Riverside, California | ||
| Course length | 2.620 miles (4.216 km) | ||
| Distance | 153 laps, 400.9 mi (645.1 km) | ||
| Average speed | 104.055 mph (167.460 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 51,000 | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Wood Brothers Racing | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Mark Donohue | Penske Racing | |
| Laps | 138 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 16 | Mark Donohue | Penske Racing | |
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | MRN | ||
| Booth announcers | Ken Squier, Marvin Panch | ||
| Turn announcers | Bill Scott, Bob Steinbrink, Fritz Duda | ||
The 1973 Winston Western 500 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series racing event that was held on January 21, 1973, at Riverside International Raceway in Riverside, California. There were 191 laps; which was very hardcore at a road course for the early-1970s. The time of the race was almost 5 hours long; which made it the equivalent of 2.5 regulation-length Formula One races.
The race was won by Mark Donohue. It would be his only win of the season. It was AMC's first win in the Grand National/Winston Cup series as a manufacturer since April 1, 1951.