Davison replaces the now-retired Tander at Grove Racing alongside Matthew Payne in the #19 Ford Mustang.
Tander’s full-time Supercars career was headlined by the 2007 championship and three Bathurst 1000 wins across 2000, 2009 and 2011.
After being unceremoniously forced into retirement when he was let go by Garry Rogers Motorsport at the end of 2018, Tander turned his attention to co-driving.
In seven starts as a co-driver, he won the Bathurst 1000 on three occasions – 2020, 2022, and most recently in 2025 with Grove Racing.
Davison, who won the 2009 Bathurst 1000 with Tander, said he spoke with his former Holden Racing Team stablemate about their respective full-time careers coming to an unceremonious end.
“I reckon up until about last year, if he was in one of the top teams out there, he’d still be a challenger for a championship, let alone five years ago when he was let go,” said Davison of Tander.
“That just spoke volumes of the sport sometimes – someone of his calibre, to not be on the grid when he was just still performing at such a high level was just criminal, really.
“But that’s the sport. No one cares for your hard luck stories – but I think he then brought that frustration to his co-driver performances.
“He’s been phenomenal since and, being able to add three more Bathurst wins to his name since then, that’s pretty motivating to me to try and replicate something like that.”
Tander’s exit from Garry Rogers Motorsport came as naming rights sponsor Peter Adderton pushed for Richie Stanaway to join the team alongside James Golding.
“I’ve spoken to Garth about it and said he was pissed off at the way things went,” said Davison.
“But he brought that into his performance to really prove a point when he got back in the car, just to bring that focus when you get back in as a co-driver.
“Garth’s done that incredibly well, it’s very motivating to try match that kind of attitude and performance.”
Dick Johnson Racing’s decision to axe Davison in favour of rookie Rylan Gray came late in the 2025 season.
It left Davison with very few options and attempts to continue full-time were ultimately unsuccessful.
Nevertheless, the 43-year-old said he still believes he has a lot to offer.
“I probably could have stretched another year or two and been competitive,” said Davison.
“Ultimately, there’s a lot more to life and I still want to make sure I’m at my A-game as a co-driver for a few years so I can really bring a big performance to Grove and Matt Payne, to help them get that big victory.
“I don’t want to just be out there making up numbers. I’m obviously there now to challenge with a great shot at the win and I still feel like I’m going to be in good shape to really play my part there.
“I do know, given a few factors, that if I were in the right opportunity this year, I’d still be up there with any of them. I’ve got no doubt about it.
“A lot of the things I know from last year are frustrating, but that’s the sport, so it’s all good.
“I’m at peace with the way it works sometimes.”
Davison will race full-time in GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS, which begins at Phillip Island on March 27-29.
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