{"id":629057,"date":"2026-08-09T19:53:17","date_gmt":"2026-08-09T19:53:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/629057\/"},"modified":"2026-08-09T19:53:17","modified_gmt":"2026-08-09T19:53:17","slug":"masterchef-australia-2026-winner-crowned-in-grand-finale","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/629057\/","title":{"rendered":"MasterChef Australia 2026 winner crowned in grand finale"},"content":{"rendered":"

WARNING: MasterChef spoilers below.<\/b><\/p>\n

One cook was crowned MasterChef Australia champion for 2026 in nailbiting scenes on the popular Ten competition cooking show.<\/p>\n

Sunday night\u2019s grand finale episode boiled down to the final two contestants, chartered accountant Petro Papathomas and registered nurse Vinnie Gibaldi, both from Melbourne, as they faced off for the coveted title in not one but two epic challenges.<\/p>\n

But after a six-hour battle in the kitchen, it was Vinnie who came out victorious and the ultimate winner of the $250,000 cash prize.<\/p>\n

Before Vinnie claimed the crown, he had to first impress the judges: Poh Ling Yeow, Andy Allen, Sofia Levin and Jean-Chrisophe Novelli. <\/p>\n

The first challenge saw a Superstar Mystery Box packed with ingredients selected by this season\u2019s unforgettable guest judges<\/a>, including artichoke from Meghan Markle and red plums from Robert Irwin.<\/p>\n

Petro and Vinnie had just 75 minutes to create a dish using one or more of the contents inside the box.<\/p>\n

Then, for their final monumental Pressure Test, the competition reached new heights when internationally acclaimed pastry chef Cherish Finden challenged the duo to replicate her famed Chinese Afternoon Tea. <\/p>\n

Finden \u2013 who is known for her artistry and attention to detail, and previously served as executive pastry chef at London\u2019s prestigious Langham Hotel \u2013 instructed Pedro, 30, and Vinnie, 26, to create perfect replicas of her three incredibly complex desserts, nine petit gateaux in total, in just five hours.<\/p>\n

With Finden\u2019s uncompromising standards when it comes to patisserie, there was no room for error. <\/p>\n

\u201cI am very fair, but I am brutal,\u201d she told the finalists. \u201cI will dissect every single layer. I will taste every component that you put in front of me.\u201d<\/p>\n

After the final marathon cook-off, Vinnie won convincingly, scoring 80 out of 90 from the judges, including Finden, for the two challenges. <\/p>\n

Petro scored a total of 67 points, but did not go home empty-handed with his $40,000 cash prize. <\/p>\n

Petro and Vinnie should give themselves a pat on the back for their efforts this season. The pair beat out 22 other amateur chefs for a place in the finale, and they also won the hearts of viewers across Australia during their MasterChef journey. <\/p>\n

For Vinnie, his heartwarming story of bonding with his single-parent dad every other weekend while they cooked and spent time together at his restaurant pulled at viewers\u2019 heartstrings. <\/p>\n

As for Petro, he and his family often dreamt of being on MasterChef as they watched the cooking show from their living room.<\/p>\n

Food and cooking was always at the heart of their gatherings, continuing on the legacy left behind by his late Yaya Sofia. <\/p>\n

This season also got a touch of royalty with Meghan Markle making an appearance as a guest judge. <\/p>\n

The Duchess of Sussex appeared on the cooking competition last month, with the special episode clocking a staggering 1.6 million viewers, according to figures released by the network.<\/p>\n

The episode recorded the show\u2019s biggest overnight Sunday audience since July 2023 and also became the show\u2019s largest-ever overnight streaming audience, attracting 118,000 viewers.<\/p>\n

During her cameo, Megan also received a surprise FaceTime call from her husband, Prince Harry<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Midway through taste-testing each finalists\u2019 dish, Meghan was caught off-guard when a production crew member walked onto the set carrying a mobile phone and announced she had a call.<\/p>\n

Meghan, 44, appeared concerned until she saw Harry\u2019s beaming face.<\/p>\n

\u201cHi, my love!\u201d she then gushed as the judges looked on delighted as Harry said, \u201cG\u2019day.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMy husband\u2019s here,\u201d Megan then told the crew and the contestants, while showing them the phone.<\/p>\n

Meghan and Harry were in Australia in April for a private visit during which the duchess filmed her MasterChef episode and hosted a wellness retreat with tickets costing upwards of $3000. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"WARNING: MasterChef spoilers below. One cook was crowned MasterChef Australia champion for 2026 in nailbiting scenes on the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":629058,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[265],"tags":[265682,265633,265625,265700,265694,265656,265708,265705,265669,265709,265696,265703,265702,24248,265643,265641,54403,156568,166742,173797,265634,265726,265629,265650,265628,265670,265624,265733,265626,265701,265716,265657,265651,265718,265632,265675,265727,265691,265692,265627,265697,265684,265710,3736,265674,1128,265724,265714,265698,10080,24379,64029,265665,18,117,137521,265648,265713,265707,265642,689,56826,265639,84173,16683,265721,265638,265673,265636,112712,265731,265722,265630,265668,250092,265712,265671,251302,265666,2598,19,25043,17,265723,25535,265717,265690,67590,130,41015,193817,265640,265686,110801,16681,5091,10486,265685,263952,51618,265706,265678,265660,265649,265680,265654,265704,265728,265663,265719,265720,265730,265659,265637,265664,265661,16686,163916,265679,110301,265695,263282,265635,265693,265725,265466,265631,265653,265658,265655,144108,59156,265687,265688,265729,265672,265681,265645,253253,253577,251344,265652,265715,265646,261146,265644,265732,262550,9358,265689,265683,265676,265662,265699,265711,265647,265667,265485,33807,1093,5973,128,177111,265677,8322,15046],"class_list":["post-629057","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tv","tag-s-beaming-face","tag-s-biggest-overnight-sunday-audience","tag-s-grand-finale-episode","tag-s-largest-ever-overnight-streaming-audience","tag-s-nailbiting-2026-grand-finale","tag-s-prestigious-langham-hotel","tag-s-uncompromising-standards","tag-s-unforgettable-guest-judges","tag-000-cash-prize","tag-000-cash-prize-before","tag-000-crown","tag-000-viewers-during","tag-265702","tag-24248","tag-2026-winner","tag-22-other-amateur-chefs","tag-54403","tag-156568","tag-166742","tag-173797","tag-67-points","tag-265726","tag-265629","tag-a-call-meghan","tag-a-chartered-accountant","tag-a-dish","tag-a-guest-judge","tag-a-mobile-phone","tag-a-pat","tag-a-place","tag-a-private-visit","tag-a-production-crew-member","tag-a-registered-nurse","tag-a-six-hour-battle","tag-a-staggering-1-6-million-viewers","tag-a-superstar-mystery-box","tag-a-surprise-facetime-call","tag-a-total","tag-a-touch","tag-a-wellness-retreat","tag-acclaimed-pastry-chef-cherish-finden","tag-an-appearance","tag-andy-allen","tag-april","tag-artichoke","tag-australia","tag-bonding","tag-brutal","tag-chartered-accountant-petro-papathomas","tag-cooking","tag-detail","tag-dish","tag-each-finalists","tag-eire","tag-entertainment","tag-error","tag-every-component","tag-every-other-weekend","tag-every-single-layer","tag-executive-pastry-chef","tag-figures","tag-finale","tag-finden","tag-front","tag-harry","tag-heartstrings","tag-her-artistry-and-attention","tag-her-cameo","tag-her-famed-chinese-afternoon-tea","tag-her-husband","tag-her-masterchef-episode","tag-her-three-incredibly-complex-desserts","tag-high-pressure-finale","tag-his-40","tag-his-family","tag-his-heartwarming-story","tag-his-late-yaya-sofia","tag-his-restaurant","tag-his-single-parent-dad","tag-home","tag-ie","tag-ingredients","tag-ireland","tag-jean-chrisophe-novelli","tag-july-2023","tag-just-75-minutes","tag-just-five-hours-with","tag-last-month","tag-london","tag-masterchef","tag-masterchef-australia","tag-masterchef-australia-champion","tag-masterchef-spoilers","tag-megan","tag-meghan","tag-meghan-markle","tag-melbourne","tag-my-husband","tag-my-love","tag-new-heights","tag-nine-petit-gateaux","tag-no-room","tag-not-one-but-two-epic-challenges-but","tag-one-cook","tag-one-or-more","tag-only-one","tag-patisserie","tag-pedro","tag-perfect-replicas","tag-petro","tag-petro-and-vinnie","tag-poh-ling-yeow","tag-prince-harry-midway","tag-red-plums","tag-registered-nurse-vinnie-gibaldi","tag-robert-irwin-petro","tag-royalty","tag-scenes","tag-sofia-levin","tag-sussex","tag-the-250","tag-the-back","tag-the-box-then","tag-the-competition","tag-the-contents","tag-the-contestants","tag-the-cooking-competition","tag-the-cooking-show","tag-the-coveted-title","tag-the-crew","tag-the-crown","tag-the-duchess","tag-the-duo","tag-the-final-marathon-cook-off","tag-the-final-two-contestants","tag-the-finale","tag-the-finalists","tag-the-first-challenge","tag-the-heart","tag-the-hearts","tag-the-judges","tag-the-kitchen","tag-the-legacy","tag-the-network-the-episode","tag-the-pair","tag-the-phone-meghan-and","tag-the-popular-ten-competition-cooking-show-sunday-night","tag-the-set","tag-the-show","tag-the-special-episode","tag-the-two-challenges","tag-the-ultimate-winner","tag-their-efforts","tag-their-final-monumental-pressure-test","tag-their-gatherings","tag-their-living-room-food","tag-their-masterchef-journey","tag-this-season","tag-tickets","tag-time","tag-total","tag-tv","tag-viewers","tag-vinnie","tag-warning","tag-winner"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"sel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