diff --git a/src/pages/cluster-management/components/cluster-form.tsx b/src/pages/cluster-management/components/cluster-form.tsx
index 616bed8b..66dda669 100644
--- a/src/pages/cluster-management/components/cluster-form.tsx
+++ b/src/pages/cluster-management/components/cluster-form.tsx
@@ -97,7 +97,14 @@ const ClusterForm: React.FC<AddModalProps> = forwardRef(
       // unmounted when model is selected, but strip it here too so the payload
       // never keeps a stale gpuInstanceOptions shape from a prior "gpu" choice.
       if (clusterType === 'model') {
-        delete next.gpuInstanceOptions;
+        next.gpuInstanceOptions = null;
+      } else if (clusterType === 'gpu' && !next.gpuInstanceOptions) {
+        // gpuInstanceOptions has no always-mounted Form.Item (its only child,
+        // the optional static address, may be unmounted or empty), so with
+        // preserve={false} onFinish's `values` can omit it. Read it straight
+        // from the store so a "gpu" cluster always carries the field.
+        next.gpuInstanceOptions =
+          form.getFieldValue(['k8s_options', 'gpuInstanceOptions']) ?? {};
       }
 
       const creds = opts.imageCredentials;
diff --git a/src/pages/cluster-management/components/k8s-pod-spec.tsx b/src/pages/cluster-management/components/k8s-pod-spec.tsx
index b306ee28..50d9aa5b 100644
--- a/src/pages/cluster-management/components/k8s-pod-spec.tsx
+++ b/src/pages/cluster-management/components/k8s-pod-spec.tsx
@@ -70,14 +70,6 @@ export const OperatorImageForm: React.FC = () => {
   );
 };
 
-// `gpuInstanceOptions` on `k8s_options` is the submitted representation of a
-// "gpu" cluster. Its presence is driven by the shared `clusterType` state (see
-// FormContext) — the selector writes it, the static-address field mounts under
-// it, and submit strips it for "model". Kept out of any Form.useWatch because
-// this path has no always-mounted Form.Item and watching it re-rendered
-// unreliably.
-const GPU_INSTANCE_OPTIONS_PATH = ['k8s_options', 'gpuInstanceOptions'];
-
 // Visual parity with @gpustack/core-ui's SwitchCard so the selector blends
 // in with surrounding form fields: same border, radius, padding, and
 // typography. The only differences are the two-column grid layout and an
@@ -172,32 +164,22 @@ const RadioDot = styled.span<{ $active: boolean }>`
 
 // Card-based selector for cluster type. The two options are mutually exclusive
 // and the choice maps directly to the presence/absence of `gpuInstanceOptions`
-// on the form — "model" clears it, "gpu" seeds it to {} (preserving any
-// already-entered static address). No standalone form field is registered; the
-// selected card is tracked in local state (seeded from the form's initial
-// value) and written back to the form on each click.
+// on the submitted payload. No standalone form field is registered; the click
+// only updates the shared `clusterType` state (see FormContext) — the payload's
+// `gpuInstanceOptions` shape is derived from it at submit (see cluster-form's
+// normalizeOutgoing), and the static-address field mounts/unmounts off it.
 export const ClusterTypeSelector: React.FC = () => {
   const intl = useIntl();
-  const form = Form.useFormInstance();
   const { presetClusterType } = useStepsContext();
   const labelId = useId();
   // Cluster type is shared, explicit state (see FormContext): the click is the
-  // source of truth. We update that state and mirror the choice onto the form
-  // for submission. This replaced a Form.useWatch on an unregistered path that
+  // source of truth. This replaced a Form.useWatch on an unregistered path that
   // did not re-render reliably when cleared to undefined.
   const { clusterType, setClusterType } = useFormContext();
   const value: 'model' | 'gpu' = clusterType ?? 'model';
 
   const handleSelect = useMemoizedFn((next: 'model' | 'gpu') => {
-    if (!form || next === value) return;
-    if (next === 'gpu') {
-      form.setFieldValue(
-        GPU_INSTANCE_OPTIONS_PATH,
-        form.getFieldValue(GPU_INSTANCE_OPTIONS_PATH) ?? {}
-      );
-    } else {
-      form.setFieldValue(GPU_INSTANCE_OPTIONS_PATH, undefined);
-    }
+    if (next === value) return;
     setClusterType?.(next);
   });
 
diff --git a/src/pages/cluster-management/step-forms/basic-form.tsx b/src/pages/cluster-management/step-forms/basic-form.tsx
index 2b538528..22ee34d2 100644
--- a/src/pages/cluster-management/step-forms/basic-form.tsx
+++ b/src/pages/cluster-management/step-forms/basic-form.tsx
@@ -18,10 +18,17 @@ const BasicForm = forwardRef((props: BasicFormProps, ref) => {
     console.log(values);
   };
 
+  // Forward through to the live ClusterForm ref on each call instead of
+  // snapshotting its methods. ClusterForm rebuilds these closures whenever its
+  // internal state (e.g. clusterType) changes, but BasicForm does not re-render
+  // with it — a frozen snapshot would keep calling stale closures (reading the
+  // initial clusterType) and be null on the first render before the ref attaches.
   useImperativeHandle(ref, () => ({
-    validateFields: formRef.current?.validateFields,
-    getFieldsValue: formRef.current?.getFieldsValue,
-    submit: formRef.current?.submit
+    validateFields: (...args: any[]) =>
+      formRef.current?.validateFields(...args),
+    getFieldsValue: (...args: any[]) =>
+      formRef.current?.getFieldsValue(...args),
+    submit: (...args: any[]) => formRef.current?.submit(...args)
   }));
 
   return (