The Tickford Racing driver executed a storming start from pole position and was never headed throughout the contest.

Gray’s only threat came on a Safety Car restart, copping a bump from behind at the final corner from Brad Vaughan, who in turn had Zach Bates rattling his bumper.

A wild launch through the Senna Chicane cost Vaughan momentum and he lost second to Bates.

Vaughan lost a further spot in the closing stages to Reuben Goodall, who pulled a decisive move on the Brad Jones Racing Holden at Turn 4.

That’s how they finished with Gray taking the chequered flag 0.977s ahead of Bates and Goodall 5.421s adrift in third.

“It means a whole bunch,” said Gray, who will graduate to the Supercars Championship with Dick Johnson Racing next season.

“It’s the plan we set at the start of the year and to say we achieved it is super amazing. I’ve had a very, very good year.

“A big thankyou to mum and dad. It’s very hard to get into this game let alone win it and they’ve been my biggest supporters throughout the whole thing.”

Rounding out the top 10 were Vaughan, Ben Gomersall, Jordyn Sinni, Jobe Stewart, Lochie Dalton, Nash Morris and Campbell Logan.

Dalton had entered the race as Gray’s closest total rival but did not have the pace to threaten.

The Safety Car was called to recover Cody Gillis’ Brad Jones Racing Holden and re-align the Turn 8 concrete wall after a savage hit on lap five.

Gillis was running 12th when he tagged the inside armco, which shot the Holden across the circuit and into the outside barrier.

The driver managed to walk away from the incident, apologising to his team via radio before exiting the car.

Others to strike trouble included NASCAR import Jesse Love, who was forced to the pits on lap two with a broken shock absorber.

He later returned to the track but did not complete enough laps to be classified a finisher.

Kelly Racing pair Max Geoghegan and Cameron McLeod also struck trouble, the former clouting the barriers at Turns 8 and 7 and the later suffering another broken shock.

Bailey Sweeny was also among the casualties, limping home after suffering a tyre failure on the final lap.