The Ford Mustang has won the biggest prize in Supercars racing with a stunning victory in a Bathurst 1000 classic at Mount Panorama.
On a day when most of the field ran into some sort of trouble, youngster Matt Payne and veteran Garth Tander got the job done in an impressive show of grit and determination – advancing 17 places from their starting spot to claim the Peter Brock Trophy.
The duo also claimed the new Endurance Cup to give Payne a 25-point boost going into the first ever Supercars Finals. In total, seven Mustang drivers made the cut to do battle in the three-round showdown that will eventually decide this year’s Supercars’ drivers’ championship.
“It was a really tough day. The conditions were tricky. But it was pretty amazing,” said Payne following his first Bathurst 1000 victory.
“The kid can drive. This kid can really drive,” said Tander, who scored his sixth win in the Bathurst 1000 and his first driving for the Blue Oval.
“I couldn’t be more proud of Matt.”
The 2025 running of the Bathurst 1000 began in bright sunshine but conditions deteriorated massively, with persistent rain throughout the back-half of the race and even thick fog in the dying laps. The drivers put on the ultimate display of skill and nerves with close door-to-door battles taking place all the way to the final lap.
It was a torrid day of competition and crashes, with heartbreak for many of the fancied Mustang runners. Top qualifier Brodie Kostecki (who led the first all-Ford top four qualifying lock-out since 1990) had a tough day but was able to race to the end after an alternator change, while Ryan Wood and rookie Kai Allen sneaked into the Top 10 of the series’ standings after repairs to their Mustangs mid-race.
The 2025 Supercars Championship series continues with the Gold Coast 500, October 24-26.
FORD RACE RESULTS
1st – Matt Payne/Garth Tander
8th – Kai Allen/Dale Wood
9th – Aaron Cameron/Zak Best
10th – Thomas Randle/James Moffat
12th – Cam Waters/Mark Winterbottom
14th – Lachie Dalton/Rylan Gray
18th – Brodie Kostecki/Todd Hazelwood
19th – Ryan Wood/Jayden Ojeda
Did Not Finish – James Courtney/Jack Perkins
Did Not Finish – Chaz Mostert/Fabian Coulthard
Did Not Finish – Will Davison/Tony D’Alberto
FORD CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
2nd – Matt Payne, 1972 points
4th – Cam Waters, 1824
5th – Chaz Mostert, 1578
6th – Brodie Kostecki, 1576
8th – Ryan Wood, 1274
9th – Thomas Randle, 1216
10th – Kai Allen, 1135
17th – Will Davison, 868
19th – James Courtney, 805
24th – Aaron Cameron, 473
TEAM OWNER/TEAM PRINCIPAL QUOTES
STEPHEN GROVE, Grove Racing
- “This feels bloody fantastic. Winning at Bathurst is everything I expected and much more. And it’s a real family effort with the team we’ve built.
-“The other thing that makes me proud is to come here and win for Ford. It’s been a few years since a Mustang did the job, so that is another special achievement.
- “When we qualified 18th with Matty Payne we knew the car was faster than it appeared and we were confident we could work our way forward. That’s exactly what the whole team did and we got the ultimate reward for all the effort.”
DAVID NOBLE, Dick Johnson Racing
- “It was a very promising weekend, and we positioned ourselves well after qualifying, but it ended up not being our day. Still, the crew did a great job on changing the alternator and getting Brodie Kostecki back into the action.
- “We probably only needed another six safety cars and we would have been back on the lead lap.
- “We talked about coming out of The Bend with good momentum and we’re going to stay positive as we move into the Finals series. The Finals will be a new experience, but we’re going forward at the right time of the year."
CARL FAUX, Walkinshaw Andretti United
- “We were in the box seat to win but in the end it didn’t happen.
- “Two engine issues in one race is not good. But I am so proud of the whole team. The relentless effort to find the problem and get Ryan Wood’s car back into the action really paid off when he made it into the Finals.”
TIM BLANCHARD, Blanchard Racing Team
- “To have two cars running in the Top 10 at one stage, after what happened here a year ago, was a huge step up for the whole team.
- “We were a bit damaged at the start and that put us on the back foot, but we made some great strategy calls in the rain and had good pace in both cars.
- “It was unfortunate that a gearbox problem took James Courtney and Jack Perkins out of the race, and it was great to see Aaron Cameron bring his car home inside the ten.
- “We had all sorts of issues but we were far more competitive and the whole weekend shows we’re heading in the right direction.”
ROD NASH, Tickford Racing
- “What a day. We were in contention, then not in contention, but that’s Bathurst.
- “It was important for us to get Thomas Randle into the Top 10 for the Finals, and we got there so that’s a tick.
- "We are a bit disappointed with where we ended up because we had a really good lead-in to the race and felt strong.
- “Our wildcard Mustang, with Lochie Dalton and Rylan Gray, got a great result with 15th place on a very tough day. They deserve to have a real spring in their step.”
“Looking ahead, we have two drivers and two cars in the Finals and a Mustang won the great race."
