When Garth Tander claimed his first Bathurst 1000 win, rising Supercars star Matt Payne hadn't been born.
Now 25 years later, Tander has claimed his sixth title at the great race as a co-driver for Payne.
The 48-year-old is now level with Mark Skaife and Larry Perkins, behind only Craig Lowndes and Jim Richards (seven), and Peter Brock (nine).
Tander - in the No.100 Grove Racing car - flaunted his experience in torrential rain at Mount Panorama to help Payne reach top spot across 161 laps after qualifying in 18th.
The pair remarkably led just four laps of the 1000km classic, with Payne crossing the finish line in second to James Golding.
PremiAir Nulon racer Golding would have snared his first-ever Supercars race win had he not copped a five-second penalty for a collision with then-leader Cooper Murray at Griffin's Bend.
Golding and co-driver David Russell settled for third, with Team 18 pair David Reynolds and Lee Holdsworth second.
Payne's remarkable victory in the seven-hour epic gives Tander his first Bathurst 1000 win in a Ford.
The long-time Holden hero made the switch after winning the 2022 race as a co-driver for Shane van Gisbergen.
Tander earns his sixth win with a fourth team, having completed the feat with Triple Eight, Holden Racing Team and Garry Rogers Motorsport.
"You never think beyond what's right in front of you," Tander said on Monday.
"I never ever try and think that we might get another one here or another one there.
"Just really, really proud of what Matt did to get his first (at the Bathurst 1000) and the first at Penrite Racing.
"Matt did such a good job at the end of that race, and the team throughout the entire day.
"We certainly started further back than we would have liked and the team did a really good job of inching our way forward."
Tander, 48, became the fifth-oldest winner of the Bathurst 1000.
He is the oldest since Jim Richards, 55, triumphed in 2022.
Tander, now an expert commentator, wouldn't be drawn on whether this year's race was his last.
"I'm just enjoying this at the moment and certainly don't make any big decisions in the wake of successful weekends like this," Tander said.
"I've got to go back to my real job."
Meanwhile, Payne became the fourth-youngest winner after Rick Kelly, Craig Lowndes and Chaz Mostert.
The New Zealander leads a cohort of emerging young talent, joined by series leader Broc Feeney (22), Ryan Wood (21), Kai Allen (20) and Cooper Murray (24).
"The whole championship has been a changing of the guard, certainly," Tander said.
"There's a bit of upward pressure from young drivers coming into the championship to keep everyone on their toes.
"Three of the four cars battling out for the win were, what you'd call, young guys. And they weren't making mistakes.
"They were racing really hard and they put on a great show.
"The future's in great hands."
