 In 1969 Roberts, then a prominent rally driver competing for a major Holden dealership, and with just a single season of circuit racing experience, was invited by Harry Firth to join his newly formed Holden Dealer Team and went on to take victory co-driving with Colin Bond in the 1969 Hardie-Ferodo 500 HDT Holden HT Monaro GTS350.Roberts and Bond won the 1970 Rothmans 12 Hour at Surfers Paradise, also in an HDT Monaro GTS350.Then Roberts drove a Holden Torana sports sedan which was used as a prototype for the Torana GTR XU-1 which debuted later in the year.