Ryan beaming with pride after Bathurst near miss
By Thomas Miles
Date posted: 13 October 2025
After Erebus rookies Cooper Murray and Jobe Stewart came so close to defending the Peter Brock Trophy against the odds, Barry Ryan is proud of his entire team.
Before the race, Erebus owner Betty Klimenko had the Peter Brock Trophy cable-tied to her arm, and for differing moments during the thrilling conclusion to the 2025 Great Race, it looked like it would stay there for another year.
As late as lap 156 of 161, Murray had the #99 Chiko Camaro in the lead amid a thrilling battle with James Golding and Matt Payne in docile conditions.
This followed a mighty co-driving effort from Stewart, who in his first Great Race, matched and beat many of the full-time stars in tough conditions.
Although the sister #9 car of Jack Le Brocq and Jarrod Hughes finished 13th, the rookie co-driver also shone during a massive stint in the rain.
Despite one moment at Griffin’s Bend seeing the victory slip away, Ryan felt his entire team did everything it could to go back-to-back.
Cooper Murray led the Bathurst 1000 in the rain. Image: Peter Norton
“Of course, I am. I could not be prouder,” Ryan told Auto Action.
“We put ourselves in a great position to win the race so you have to be proud of everyone.
“To have a rookie leading the race for so long with a rookie co-driver, not many teams can say that.
“Jarrod’s drive with Jack was also amazing. He was a standout in the wet, it was great to see that.
“The whole team was great. I can only think of one mistake, but they fixed it pretty quick.
“We have only just got started, and we know we can come back next year even stronger.”
After the Bathurst winning driver and engineering combination of Brodie Kostecki, Todd Hazelwood and George Commins all departed to DJR, some wondered if Erebus would be able to cover those losses.
Co drivers Jobe Stewart (left) and Jarrod Hughes (right) sit on either side of Max Geoghegan. Image: Peter Norton
But the rookie pairing, combined with engineer Wayne Mackie, gave it a big shake in one of the toughest and most unpredictable Great Races ever.
Ryan believes it is proof of the team’s strengths and suggested it has the potential of making a similar rise to 2021 when rookies Kostecki and Will Brown arrived.
“The core of the team is still here and as long as you have that, it does not matter what drivers or engineers do because we will keep doing what we do,” he said.
“We have had it before, introducing young drivers like in 2020 and we still rebuilt and won the championship.
“It’s the same this year. We had a few leave and now we have proved we can still win Bathurst.
“The sky is the limit now for our future.
“If we can keep that select group and build the momentum, we can do it.”
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