EXCLUSIVE: Laura opens up about what it means to finally win the cooking competition.

MasterChef’s Laura Sharrad and Emelia Jackson.

MasterChef’s Laura Sharrad and Emelia Jackson have previously competed alongside one another on the show twice. Photos: Channel 10/Instagram

It’s been 11 years since Laura Sharrad and Emelia Jackson first competed alongside one another on MasterChef Australia, finishing in second and third place, respectively. The season six contestants then returned to the competition in 2020 for the first ‘Back To Win’, with Emelia taking the title and Laura once again coming runner-up.

This year’s season of the Channel 10 show saw Laura return for her third shot at the crown, and she was ultimately announced as the winner in Tuesday night’s grand finale. She tells Yahoo Lifestyle following her victory that while it was her first finale without Emelia, the Dessert Queen was definitely there in spirit.

“Emelia and I were actually messaging a lot throughout the episode. She was constantly checking in and sending me very motivating messages; it was so lovely,” she shares. “I got a really lovely message from her [on Wednesday morning] too, like, ‘Finally! Welcome to the club’.”

Emelia, who has known Laura since childhood as they attended the same primary and high school, albeit in separate years, also tells Yahoo Lifestyle that she’s incredibly proud of her friend and former co-star.

“I’m so so so proud of Loz,” she says. “Showing up for a third time, with her beautiful baby in tow, no less, would have been so difficult. I always knew she had it in he,r and I am so happy to see our names side by side on the MasterChef trophy!”

MasterChef's Laura Sharrad.

Laura won this year’s season of MasterChef Australia. Photo: Channel 10

Tuesday night’s episode saw Laura go head-to-head with another one of her 2020 co-stars, Callum Hann, who has now replaced her as the only contestant to finish second twice.

She explains that while every grand finale she’s experienced has been incomparable and she’s “loved them all in different ways”, she felt as though there was a “new energy” this time around.

“I felt really confident and calm,” she remarks. “I was probably the most excited that I’ve ever been because my husband Max and our daughter Florence were going to be there, and I was getting to do it alongside my friend, Callum.”

She also reveals that despite the show filming alternate endings with each of the two finalists, she wasn’t too surprised with the result that aired on TV.

“Although I was personally aware of the result, my friends and family weren’t, so watching it together and soaking up the moment with them was very special,” she recalls. “To see it play out on air also made it feel real, which I think I needed because before that, I kept thinking, ‘Did I actually win? Were they sure?’.”