Front-row starter Payne got the better of pole-sitter Kostecki (Erebus) to steal the top spot from the get-go before fending off his rival drivers to take out the final race of the season on Sunday.

Touted as the next big thing out of New Zealand since three-time champion Shane van Gisbergen (Triple Eight), the 21-year-old’s triumph marked his first podium finish.

“It’s pretty special. I always set out to win. That’s what every racing driver does,” Payne said.

“I was getting halfway through the race and I was like, ‘I think it’s going to happen’.

“It was a long, long last 10 laps … but I’ve believed all season I could.”

Payne couldn’t be caught in the 78-lap street circuit race, finishing clear of Triple Eight’s Broc Feeney by a comfortable buffer of 8.548 seconds.

Feeney also won his maiden race at the same circuit last year, becoming the second-youngest driver to win a Supercars race behind three-time champion Scott McLaughlin.

Kostecki was determined to finish the season with a win after claiming the championship thanks to a collision ruling out rival van Gisbergen but the door was shut firm after Feeney surged to second in lap 31.

Payne’s teammate David Reynolds then blitzed past Kostecki in lap 41 to deny the Erebus driver a podium finish.

In the end, Kostecki slumped to eighth place after a failed manoeuvre at turn eight in the 64th lap.

Kostecki and teammate Will Brown, who finished 14th, will at least be buoyed by winning the teams’ championships over Triple Eight despite Feeney’s top-two finish.

With a move to the NASCAR series in the US scheduled for next year, it was a disappointing afternoon for van Gisbergen who failed to finish to close his 16-year-old Supercars career.

Dogged by car troubles all weekend, he made seven pit stops during the race as his crew struggled to identify any issues.

Van Gisbergen did not return to the track after turning back into the pit in lap 63.

RACE 28 RESULTS:

1. Matthew Payne (Grove Racing)

2. Broc Feeney (Triple Eight Race Engineering)

3. David Reynolds (Grove Racing)

4. Cam Waters (Tickford Racing)

5. Chaz Mostert (Walkinshaw Andretti United)

FINAL CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS:

1. Brodie Kostecki – 2888 pts

2. Shane van Gisbergen – 2565 pts

3. Broc Feeney – 2441 pts

4. Chaz Mostert – 2287 pts

5. Will Brown – 2264 pts

– AAP