How Waters proved title credentials to Tander

Garth Tander claims Cam Waters made big statement to Tickford
Waters recovered from lowly grid spots to score crucial points in Melbourne
Tickford driver just seven points behind new leader Will Brown

Supercars legend Garth Tander has labelled Cam Waters' crucial charges at the Grand Prix as "drives of a champion," despite the Tickford Racing driver losing the points lead.

The Tickford Racing driver arrived at Albert Park as the hunted, following his hat-trick of wins from pole position in Sydney last month.

However, the one-lap pace disappeared in Melbourne, Waters starting 22nd and 19th for the Thursday and Saturday races, putting the points leader under serious pressure.

With his back against the wall, Waters powered from 22nd to sixth in Race 4, and backed it up with a run from 19th to ninth in Race 6 to go with his sixth place finish on Friday.

While a 60-point lead turned into a seven-point deficit to new leader and reigning champion Will Brown, Waters caught the attention of 2007 champion Tander.

“I made the point in the call on Thursday, that Cam’s drive on Thursday was the drive of a champion,” Tander said on the broadcast.

“He’s not a champion yet, but that was a drive of a champion. And he did it again on Saturday.

“That’s what you have to do, when the chips are down, you have to strap the car on your back, put it your shoulders, and carry it to the front of the field.”

Tander claimed Waters made a statement to his team, given the 30-year-old has not only dominated and fought for wins, but also stayed out of trouble to bring home crucial points this season.

“The team obviously did a great job of giving him a faster race car in the races. But he had to stay out of all that trouble, he had to make the right decisions at the right times,” Tander explained.

“He had to be aggressive when he needed to, and he did all that, and he went right to the front of the field, scored a bag points, minimised the damage from a championship perspective.

“What that does for the team, is it says we’ve got a guy that wants this. He showed us in Sydney that he wants it, and wants it bad.

"He showed us again here at Albert Park, he wants it, even when the chips are down, he’ll work hard, roll his sleeves up and get the points that he needs to get.

“What that says to the team is, we need to give our man the best possible car week in, week out to let him do his thing.”

The 2025 Repco Supercars Championship will resume in New Zealand at the ITM Taupō Super 440 on April 11-13. Tickets for the event are on sale now.