Jayden Ojeda with David Russell. Image: Richard Gresham
The 27-year-old greeted the chequered flag in sixth before a five-second post-race penalty to Matt Payne elevated the #31 Camaro one position.
Payne’s penalty had been the result of late-race contact with Ojeda, the Kiwi having shouldered the rookie out of the way while carving through on younger tyres.
It was the final hit in a dramatic day for the PremiAir entry Ojeda shared with David Russell, who was involved in multiple incidents during the wet early stints.
The result eclipsed Ojeda’s previous best finish of sixth achieved with Walkinshaw last year at The Bend and in Tasmania earlier this season.
“DRuss did an awesome job to bring the car back to me in one piece,” reflected Ojeda, who has led the way among the rookies this season.
“That was a task in itself with how much aquaplaning there was and how difficult the conditions were.
“The crew were awesome as well, all the pit stops were really strong, and we just kept chipping away.
“We had a really strong car in the wet and found ourselves inside the top five.”
Ojeda drove from 13th to third during his first stint in the car, which was also the last wet portion of the race.
“As the track started to dry, we struggled a little bit,” Ojeda added.
“I think a lot of the qualities that made the car really nice in the wet probably worked against us a little once it dried out.
“Ultimately, though, it was awesome to hang in there and come away with a top-five result. It’s my first top five, which is really special.”
David Russell endured the tough early conditions. Image: Supplied
While a breakthrough for Ojeda, it marked another strong finish for Russell, who has scored top-six results in eight of his last nine starts stretching back to 2021.
Russell praised the effort from Ojeda and the PremiAir team, while describing the treacherous early conditions.
“Visibility was incredibly poor, there was a lot of aquaplaning, and they were probably some of the most difficult stints I’ve done in a Supercar,” he said.
“At times, you couldn’t even see the rain light of the car in front.
“It was disappointing to get turned around and hit a couple of times, because I feel like we could have been a lot further up without those incidents.
“There was obviously a lot happening, but the main thing was making sure we brought the car home while still trying to recover as much ground as we could.”
The result – combined with disqualification for James Golding – puts Ojeda 12th in the standings, just 70 points adrift of the Finals cut-off with one round remaining.
Teammate Declan Fraser is 21st in the championship after the car he shared with Nash Morris at The Bend stopped in the closing stages with no oil pressure while running 17th.
Fraser had been the only full-time driver to start the race before handing over to Morris, who endured a spectacular spin after a side-swipe from eventual winner Chaz Mostert.
Golding disqualification shakes up race for Finals Series berth