It also left the veteran with a mix of emotions – and amusingly delivered anecdotes – to reflect on from a classic Great Race.

Chief among them was a self-described “cheeky” last lap attempt to steal the win from Grove Racing’s Matt Payne.

Reynolds poked the nose of his Team 18 Camaro around the outside of Payne’s Mustang at The Cutting, only to find no space left on the exit.

“I’m pretty exhausted, exhilarated, proud of everyone and also a bit pissed off that Matt tried to put me in the fence on the last lap,” said Reynolds in the post-race press conference.

“What an arsehole, hey?” he said, clearly in jest, before adding: “To be honest I would have done the same anyway!”

Offered the right of reply on the close call, Payne said: “I knew he was right there.

“I sort of felt that the last two or three laps we started to fade a bit as the track dried out. I didn’t think we were as strong; it was tough.

“He came from a long way back and was a rocket ship so I knew it would be tough on that last lap. I knew if I could just get out of the Elbow alright, I would be OK. I’m f***ing glad I did!”

FORD WIN THE REPCO BATHURST 1000 FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE 2019!!! #RepcoSC #Supercars #Bathurst1000 pic.twitter.com/troy1jEURi

— Supercars (@supercars) October 12, 2025

Unlike in his famous nail-biting second place to Jamie Whincup in the 2012 race, Reynolds left nothing on the table.

“I had a mega day,” Reynolds continued, sitting proudly beside friend and co-driver Lee Holdsworth.

“To share my car with my mate who lives around the corner, we’ve had honestly the best weekend every, we’ve had laughs, we’ve carried on, just trying to make the car as best we can.

“I love those drying conditions where there’s always a bit of intermittent shit going on, that was me to a tee. I thrive in those conditions.

“My car was unbelievable in the semi dry conditions, but in the wet it was the scariest piece of shit I’ve ever had in my life and I feared for my life many, many times in that race!

“It was so dumb. We were going 300km/h and I can’t see anything. I don’t know who is in front of me, who is beside me, I’ve got no idea. It was just scary.”

Also adding to the scenario during the closing stages was the fog that descended over the top of Mount Panorama.

“The fog was really, really bad,” Reynolds added.

“You couldn’t see from flag point to flag point. Generally, that’s a ‘come into pit lane and wait for the fog to disappear’, so I’m glad they let the race run.

“But it was super scary, I couldn’t see anything. I turned my dash down to try and get more visibility, but it was really dark and really ominous.”