25 best Supercars drivers since 2000: #19 David Reynolds

As 2025 gets underway, Supercars.com is ranking the top 25 drivers of the last 25 years, continuing with David Reynolds, who comes in as our #19.

Where do you even begin with David Reynolds?

Larrikin, resilient, competitive and, on his day, unbeatable. It’s a small summation of a driver who has pieced together a career with true ‘David versus Goliath’ moments, if you’ll pardon the pun.

Already a Carrera Cup champion by 22, Reynolds made a quiet start to life in Supercars, waiting until 2009 for a maiden Bathurst start, being called up for the 2010 enduros with the Holden Racing Team, and going on a rollercoaster in 2011 with Kelly Racing.

A move to Ford Performance Racing in 2012 was the making of Reynolds, who was a bold dive on Jamie Whincup away from a stunning Bathurst win. In 2013, he finally broke through to win on the Gold Coast, and by 2015, he was a championship contender.

Then, he had to start all over again, joining Erebus Motorsport. A podium in the final race of 2016 was a glimpse of what was to come, with Reynolds delivering a drive for the ages at the Mountain to claim a fairytale Bathurst win, five years after his stinging defeat. More wins followed in 2018, as did a landmark 10-year deal. However, it only lasted a single year before he joined the Groves, where after a brutal 2021, was a podium regular in 2022.

He was the form driver at the end of 2023, winning on the Gold Coast, but by that stage had already signed a deal to join Team 18. As he has done for the entirety of his career, Reynolds raised plenty of eyebrows in 2024, balancing raw speed with huge accidents. It was a sign of his commitment, something Team 18 will be hoping he turns into results this season.

David Reynolds' key stats since 2000

Years active: 2007-present

Rounds: 209

Races: 456

Best championship position: 5th (2018)

Best finish: 1st (8 wins)

Top three finishes: 44

Best start: 1st (16 pole positions)

Best Bathurst result: 1st (2017)

The highlight

Could it be any other race than Bathurst 2017? Perhaps — his breathtaking victory on the Gold Coast in 2023, when he outlasted eventual champion Brodie Kostecki, snapped a five-year drought. Gold Coast 2013, his 2015 wins, a trio of victories in 2018, they’re all impressive.

But that race in 2017, one that went for seven hours in changeable conditions, caught nearly everyone out, Reynolds included. But in such a dramatic and emotionally-charged run home, Reynolds was almost robotic once he claimed the lead, and never looked back.

It’s hard to know how different his legacy would be had his body not failed him in 2018. It was a tough watch, and seemed so unfair. But in that defeat, Reynolds still proved his skills are the envy of many, and why he’s one of the modern greats.

Why we picked him

With eight wins, 44 podiums and 16 pole positions, Reynolds has had a good look at it in Supercars. Eight wins mightn’t seem like a big number; rather, it’s the scale of those wins which puts Reynolds into this list.

The 2012 Bathurst performance was no fluke; he’d already claimed a podium in Townsville, and by 2013, there was genuine belief he could break through and become a constant at the front. Alongside Dean Canto, he did just that in Surfers Paradise, at one of the most gruelling events we’ve got.

Tickford Racing, then known as Prodrive Racing Australia, hit top form in 2015. It seemed cruel that Reynolds’ days there seemed numbered by the time he was mounting a title challenge. A wet-weather Bathurst pole was impressive, as were wins in Darwin and Pukekohe, while he didn’t back down in a controversial feud with Shane van Gisbergen.

Reynolds pushed Erebus forward, no doubt about it. The 2017 Bathurst win was big for the team, but equally so for Reynolds. He’d been in the game for a decade, and despite many headline drives, hadn’t landed a killer blow. When it mattered, he showed his rivals he could be a real problem. If not for cramps in 2018, he’d be a two-time Bathurst winner.

For someone who flies off the handle with comments you never see coming, Reynolds has some real mongrel in him. If he’s been hard done by on track, he won’t walk away from it. If he makes a mistake, he punishes himself in the media. He’s gone up against the very best, and has done it his way.

The views in this article do not necessarily express the opinions of Supercars, teams or drivers.