It’s all about unfinished business on MasterChef Australia 2025, as some of the most unforgettable contestants who were left hungry for more return for another epic Back to Win season.
From 2012’s Audra Morrice to more recent standouts like 2023’s Declan Cleary and 2024’s Sav Perera, the MasterChef Australia 2025 cast is stacked with fan favourites and some serious culinary talent, all stepping back into the kitchen for one more shot at the coveted trophy.
The chefs will once again have to face high-stakes Pressure Tests, Mystery Box Challenges, Service Challenges and, of course, those dreaded elimination rounds.
Whether they narrowly missed the title the first time around or bowed out too soon, these returning chefs are hungrier than ever to prove they’ve got what it takes.
Standing between them and the crown is the formidable panel of MasterChef Australia judges: the ever-charming Andy Allen, food critic Sofia Levin, beloved cook Poh Ling Yeow, and multi-Michelin-starred French chef Jean-Christophe Novelli. And of course, there’ll be a surprise guest judge or two along the way, including Gordon Ramsay, who’s set to make an appearance this season.
The last MasterChef: Back to Win season in 2020 saw chef and cake designer Emelia Jackson (who originally placed third in Season 6) take out the win, walking away with a $250,000 cash prize and the title of MasterChef champion.
Sadly, however, in the race to make one chef’s MasterChef dream come true, we’ll have to say goodbye to contestants along the way. You can catch up on everything that happens in each MasterChef Australia 2025 episode here.
So, who has left the MasterChef Australia 2025 kitchen so far? Scroll through to find out.
Everyone who has left MasterChef Australia 2025
Alana Lowes
Alana Lowes found herself in a ‘dual duel,’ which saw her tackle a one-on-one cook against Sarah, while Laura went up against Snez. The judges deemed Snez and Sarah’s dishes the most impressive, so Alana and Laura cooked against each other in an elimination challenge and were required to use fennel seeds in their dish.
Laura served up a Chilled Squid and Fennel Noodle dish while Alana opted for a Sour Cherry Sorbet and Candied Fennel Stalks.
Unfortunately for Alana, the judges said that while her fennel seed flavour was there, it battled to shine through against all the other elements, and she was sent home.
Audra Morrice
In a devastating turn, Sunday’s Elimination Cook saw Audra say goodbye to the MasterChef kitchen, again. Audra originally made it to the top 3 on MasterChef Australia in 2012, was a co-host for MasterChef Asia in 2015, and a judge on MasterChef Singapore. But, sadly, her second turn on Back To Win has come to an end.
Tasked with cooking a dish that transports you to another country, Audra went with a classic Spanish Paella. However, due to her dish’s numerous issues, including watery consistency and unevenly cooked seafood, she was asked to hang up her apron.
Andre Ursini
Andre struggled with Philip Khoury‘s Pressure Test: a plant-based dessert called Dawn of a Tropical New Day. Contestants had to create an intricately decorated dish, with coconut, white chocolate, fresh mango compote and coconut chantilly.
Sadly, Andre’s sponge and chocolate shell were too thick, affecting the flavours. After a good run in MasterChef Australia 2025, he was sent home.
Declan Cleary
Fans were left saddened after Declan’s Inside Out Skewers failed to impress, with the judges citing that the dish was incomplete. The cooking task was set by Aussie icon Maggie Beer, with the challenge being a “decreasing time versus increasing ingredients” task.
Sadly, Declan just missed out on a place in the top 10 thanks to his sauceless slaw, with the judges wanting to see a more cohesive plate.
Theo Loizou
Curtis Stone returned for another cook-along, which unfortunately sent Theo packing. Ben, Jamie, Sarah and Theo were tasked with his cooking Slow-Cooked Lamb Raviolo, and it looked like Jamie was in trouble when he had to redo his Ricotta.
However, Theo faced a bigger problem: his ricotta didn’t set, and his pasta was undercooked, leading to his elimination.
“I was really disappointed, but at the same time I was kind of relieved as well in a way,” he told Chattr in a post-elimination interview.
“It was quite hard this time around, against seasoned chefs. I’m, like, an infant in this industry, so I’m still trying to find my feet, and it was really difficult competing against such good cooks. It was really disappointing, though, because obviously I wanted to go further and win.”
Beau Cook
On last night’s Sweet Week Elimination Cook, the chefs were tasked with crafting a mindblowing dessert inspired by their childhood memories, and whoever impressed the judges the least would be hanging up their apron. After his Spider Splice with homemade Cola ice fizzled, the judges bid goodbye to Beau.
“It was a sense of disappointment and relief,” Beau told Chattr of his elimination. “Obviously, I’d had a really good couple of weeks leading up to that, I didn’t think I’d actually get to that point and do that well with some of the food. But, I was excited to get home and just get back into some projects.”
Samira El Khafir
Samira was sent home during an elimination that required four of the contestants to cook a MasterChef-worthy dish using a selection of the 40+ ingredients. She chose to make a Turkish Chicken and Eggplant Kofta, but her chicken, which she cooked on the hibachi, ended up being too dry.
It was the second MasterChef Australia 2025 journey that ended after a hibachi cook. Cath was also sent home earlier in the season because her cooking method on the hibachi caused some of the mushrooms to burn.
“I think there’s a curse about it, because the hibachi, for some reason, was just not as hot as it was meant to be,” Samira laughed in a post-elimination interview with Chattr.
“At the end of the day, it is what it is. It happened. I left, and it’s time to move on and focus on the future,” she added.
Darrsh Clarke
Darrsh was up against Ben, Callum, Andre and Samira in an elimination round set by viral online chef Andy Cooks. After their epic cheese-pull dishes were deemed not so epic in the first challenge, Andy challenged the chefs to create a “satisfying slice” to save their aprons.
Sticking to what he knows, Darrsh plated up a Choux pastry bun – with a twist! This time it was Choux-ception, with Darrsh attempting a Choux bun inside a Choux bun. The outer bun would have an orange blossom crème pâtissière inside, while the inner bun was stuffed with a pistachio praline.
Despite bold intentions, Darrsh used too many eggs and plated up a burnt pastry. With the judges unimpressed, Darrsh bid farewell to the MasterChef Australia kitchen for the second year in a row.
On his exit, Darrsh said, “meeting all of these amazing people, it’s been very inspiring to be around, and I think just having that energy to be around you really motivates you, and I’m really excited for what’s next.”
Tim Bone
Sunday night’s episode of MasterChef saw 12 of the contestants fighting for their apron in a Pressure Test. The challenge, set by Jean-Christophe Novelli, was to hero butter in a dish. Unfortunately, fan fave Tim Bone was sent home after choosing to cook confit duck with only 75 minutes of cooking time.
Tim plated up a Confit Duck with Celeriac Purée, Miso Mushrooms and Asparagus for the judges. Sadly though, the duck was undercooked and tough, while the other flavours were muddled and the butter didn’t stand out.
When speaking to the judges, Tim said: “The pressure does get to you, you do get in your own head.”
Tim lamented that he wanted to “get back to the bloke” he was the last time he was on MasterChef, because “he was just loving life.”
Rue Mupedzi
Rue Mupedzi went up against Sarah, Tim and Audra in a Pressure Test set by Blayne Bertoncello.
The cooks had to create Blayne’s technical Variations of Sourdough and Strawberry with Elderflower and Balsamic dessert. But instead of making one dish, they had to make five!
The judges were impressed with Audra and Sarah’s creations, but thought Rue and Tim’s were lacking. Ultimately, Rue was sent home, with the judges saying that her pastry cream was overcooked and her strawberry gum emulsion was almost entirely lacking.
“I was very bummed, because I felt like I still had so much more to showcase, so much more to give and unfortunately, that doesn’t always happen,” Rue told Chattr of her elimination.
“I felt like, Oh, I’m saving all these good dishes so that I can make them another time, and another time never came. So it was just like, you know, really disappointing not having had the opportunity to make some creative ideas that I had.”
Rhiannon Anderson
Rhiannon Anderson was sent home during a Surf and Turf challenge set by Josh Niland. The contestants were asked to create a dish with a spin on the classic meal.
Rhiannon opted for Lobster Wontons with Beef Broth. Unfortunately, Andy said she veered too far away from her usual cooking, and she was eliminated from the competition.
“I’ll stick to the original [Surf and Turf],” Rhiannon told Chattr in a post-elimination interview.
“It’s so funny because it was mine and Dino’s first date meal, and I always cook it for him, the original. So, I’m definitely not going on the modern take anymore,” she laughed.
Jimmy Wong
Viewers said goodbye to another lovable MasterChef Australia contestant when Jimmy Wong was sent home during the Pressure Test set by celebrated pastry chef Steven He.
Jimmy was emotional when he found out that he was leaving the competition, but told Chattr that despite his disappointment, his time on the show was “magical”.
“To be quite honest, I’ve enjoyed every minute,” he added.
Matt Hopcraft
Loveable dentist Matt Hopcraft was the fourth person eliminated from MasterChef Australia Back to Win 2025.
The May 18 episode kicked off Showstoppers week, and the first stop was an Elimination Round. The contestants were asked to create a dish with “tabletop theatre,” and Sofia explained that each dish would need to have an impressive flair.
Dephinder’s Raj Kachori Volcano did just that, with Andy saying that her dish worked “seamlessly”. However, Matt, Rue, and Snez’s dishes missed the mark, and they were announced as the bottom three.
Ultimately, it was Matt who was eliminated for his Anzac Biscuit Bombe Alaska dessert named The Rising Sun because his meringue split.
“It’s kind of gutting,” Matt said of his elimination. “Everyone’s going to be eliminated at some point, except for the one person who wins, but you want to be eliminated cooking something that’s really good, and you’ve just been beaten by other people who’ve done better.
“So it’s a little bit disappointing, but I was still really, really proud of what I did by taking a risk and trying to push myself to meet that particular brief.”
Steph De Souza
Steph De Souza was put up for an elimination cook after Jamie guessed the wrong ingredient in the taste test. Jamie’s team was told that they were able to cook anything they like, but the pantry was only made up of ingredients from the taste test.
While Jamie struggled with his overcooked duck, Steph seemed relatively happy with her Crispy Pork Belly with Belachan Sauce.
However, the judges weren’t on the same page. They said that there was too much Belachan in the caramel sauce, and that the fat hadn’t rendered on the pork.
“I was actually really happy with my dish. So it’s always disappointing when you go out on something that you like,” Steph told Chattr in a post-elimination interview.
Looking back on her dish, Steph said that despite her elimination, she was proud of what she served the judges..
“I still stand by it, which is probably stupid,” Steph laughed. “I really liked it. I really honestly felt that the sauce kind of balanced out the fattiness of the pork, but you know, everyone’s got different palettes, and I do like things that are really funky and really strong.”
Sav Perera
Fan favourite Sav Perera was eliminated during the Episode 6 Pressure Cook round.
Sav was put up against Ben, Sarah and Darrsh after the squid dish she cooked in the Mystery Box round wasn’t big enough for all of the judges to try.
During the elimination round, Sav forgot to chill her chocolate tin, which meant that it didn’t have enough time to form a shell, and bent out of shape when she tried to take it out of the mould.
Cath Collins
Cath Collins, who finished fifth on MasterChef Australia 2023, was the first Back to Win 2025 contestant eliminated.
Cath chose to cook a Japanese-inspired dish: marinated Japanese grilled mushrooms, furikake, pickled wakame, smoked soy cream, and shiso gel on the hibachi. However, her cooking method caused some of the mushrooms to burn, which led to her elimination.
Cath told Chattr in a post-elimination interview that she was “just devastated” to be the first person sent home from the competition. She said that it “never, ever entered” her mind that she’d be gone so early.
Pete Campbell
The first departure for 2025 was a particularly sad one. At the beginning of the episode, Andy announced that Pete Campbell was leaving MasterChef Australia.
“Before we kick things off, I’ve got some news,” the MasterChef judge began. “Due to personal reasons, Pete is unable to continue in the competition, and we wish him nothing but the best.”
A Network 10 spokesperson told Chattr that Pete left the show due to a medical diagnosis, which Pete has since confirmed is cancer.
“During production of MasterChef Australia: Back To Win, Pete Campbell received a diagnosis that required him to step away from the competition to focus on his health,” they began.
“The MasterChef family supports Pete in his recovery and hopes to see him back doing what he loves in the kitchen very soon.”
Shortly after Episode 3 of MasterChef Australia 2025 aired, Pete took to Instagram to confirm that this departure was due to being diagnosed with cancer.
“Didn’t even get to cook for the judges! But you know what they say… ‘if you have cancer, you should go get chemo,’” he wrote.
“A massive thank you to everyone messaging and checking in, you’re all so nice.”
MasterChef Australia season 17 airs in 2025 on 10 and 10Play.
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