Matty Payne Wins Bathurst!

Matt Payne and Garth Tander won the 2025 Repco Bathurst 1000 for Grove Racing in a wet weather race, and what an absolute privilege it was to witness it!

The race was decided by a 15-lap shootout, initially led by Cooper Murray, James Golding, and Matt Payne. Golding went deep at Hell Corner, gifting Payne second place, who then chased Murray.

Payne briefly took the lead but ran wide, allowing Murray to regain it. Golding then hit Murray, allowing Payne to take the lead.

Golding received a five-second penalty, and Reynolds moved into contention. Ultimately, Payne secured the win after holding off Reynolds.

The race featured several incidents, including a start-line issue for Brad Vaughan, engine problems for multiple teams, and crashes involving Tony D’Alberto and Cameron McLeod.

Morris's accident triggered a Safety Car, leading to pit stops and a bizarre sequence involving Waters and Winterbottom. Whincup pitted again after the restart, handing the lead to Russell.

Winterbottom's costly tire choice led to damage and a pit stop. Russell led Ojeda, but Ojeda passed Russell for the lead, followed by Best.

Ojeda pitted, and Kostecki's attempt to navigate cars resulted in a collision and a penalty. De Pasquale's race ended with damage at the Esses.

Kostecki's day worsened with another off-track incident. Bates had two near-incidents at Murray's Corner. Brown locked up and stopped in the gravel.

Wood led after pit stops, but Feeney's crash brought out another Safety Car, erasing Wood's lead. Wood led the restart.

Courtney retired from seventh place due to a transaxle problem, eliminating him and his co-driver from contention. Golding moved inside of Wood with 33 laps remaining.