Age: 53

State: Victoria

Instagram: @matt_hopcraft 

Previous season & place: Season 7, placed 6th

It might be 10 years since Matt Hopcraft first stepped out of his dentist’s rooms and into the MasterChef Australia kitchen, but the Melbourne father of two feels right at home coming Back To Win, admitting there’s something magical about this kitchen.

Matt returns with a desire to better his sixth-place finish in season seven, fondly recalling cooking for some of food’s biggest names back then, including Marco Pierre White, Heston Blumenthal and Rick Stein.

After the competition, Matt staged some pop-up dining events and worked in kitchens to enhance his pasta making skills, however he has primarily focussed on his career in dental public health.

With a PhD and a Master’s degree in community dentistry, Matt served in the Royal Australian Army Dental Corps for seven years before working as a dentist in public and private practice, then rising to the role of CEO of the Australian Dental Association, Victorian Branch.

Matt now works as an associate professor at Melbourne University, teaching ethics and professional practice. As a respected industry expert, Matt often provides media commentary on matters of oral health, and is passionate about raising awareness of mental health issues within the dental profession.

Inspired by Stephanie Alexander, Andrew McConnell and Josh Niland in the kitchen, Matt also has huge respect for the advocacy work that Maggie Beer is doing to improve nutrition for those living in aged care.

With a deep love for pasta, Matt finds making his own from scratch. Also a fan of cooking seafood, Matt admits his weakness will be cooking desserts as he doesn’t regularly cook with sugar, knowing its effects on teeth.

Supported at home by wife Erika and children Emily and Lachlan, now in their 20s, Matt dreams of a future focussed more on food. Still a fan of down-to-earth, simple and tasty dishes, he plans to showcase more refinement during Back To Win, and hopes to let his creativity loose.