Another year, another championship for Giacomo Agostini, taking his seventh consecutive 500cc crown for MV Agusta.[1] Things were tighter in the 350cc class with Jarno Saarinen giving Agostini a strong challenge.[1] In the 250cc division, Saarinen would win a tight race in a season-long battle with Rod Gould and Renzo Pasolini.[1]Angel Nieto claimed a double, winning the 125cc and 50cc championships for Derbi before the Spanish factory announced its pull out from Grand Prix racing.[1] The Yamaha factory won its first-ever 500cc Grand Prix victory when Chas Mortimer won the 500cc Spanish Grand Prix for the Japanese manufacturer.[2]
Points were awarded to the top ten finishers in each race. Only the best of five races were counted on 50cc and Sidecars championships, while in the 125cc, 250cc, 350cc and 500cc championships, the best of seven races were counted.