The highlight of Murphy's TV comeback

Skippering the victory lane interviews at Pukekohe left Greg Murphy “proud and honoured”.

Murphy emceed the PIRTEK Victory Lane celebrations following the emotional Pukekohe finale.

Shane van Gisbergen overhauled Cam Waters to win the epic finale on Sunday.

Andre Heimgartner made it two New Zealanders on the podium in third.

At the centre of it all was Murphy, who was making his first event broadcast appearance since February 2020.

Murphy was previously a fixture of the TV team before COVID-19 restrictions intervened.

Prior to his absence, Murphy was a notable presence in pit lane, and was the victory lane interviewer.

No podium interviews could have carried more weight that those he conducted after Sunday’s finale.

Murphy revved up the crowd with, ‘Long live the king’, referring to van Gisbergen’s hometown win.

In the closing laps of the race, Murphy was seen battling to hold back tears as van Gisbergen closed on victory.

Speaking on Supercars’ Cool Down Lap podcast, Murphy labelled those particular interviews as a privilege.

“I was proud and honoured,” he said of the victory lane interview.

“I feel privileged to be given the chance to do that.

“I’m proud of [Shane] and I’m proud of Andre, that for him is massive.

“But to be here and be right there amongst it with that energy from that crowd.

“They’re very fortunate moments."

Van Gisbergen ensured the final winner at Pukekohe was not only a Kiwi, but an Auckland native.

The points leader later admitted he battled being the centre of attention, but delivered in spades.

For Murphy, who will race in Bathurst as a wildcard, the Race 29 result, complete with dramatic overtake, was a “fairytale”.

“It’s hard to fathom,” Murphy said of the result.

“How do you put what happened into words? You try, but it’s very difficult.

“It was just meant to be, these fairytales, and I’ve been part of a few.

“For Shane to close the book on this place with what he did, I don’t think there’ll be a Bathurst or championship that’ll be bigger.”

The 2022 season will resume in Bathurst next month.

Tickets for the Repco Bathurst 1000 are available on Supercars.com and Ticketek.