Payne and Stanaway Make Gains at ITM Taupo Super400 with Home Advantage

As the Repco Supercars Championship made its highly anticipated return to New Zealand for the ITM Taupō Super400, Penrite Racing’s Kiwi drivers, Matt Payne and Richie Stanaway made the most of their home advantage.

The day began with qualifying, where Payne secured a solid P4 finish, while Stanaway landed in P14. With the worst of the rain past, Payne went into the top 10 shootout determined and executed his lap perfectly, narrowly edging out Broc Feeney by 0.126 seconds winning boost pole position. The result is Payne’s second pole of the 2024 campaign and his supercars career.

“Margins are so close, what a way to start a Sunday,” said Payne. “It’s amazing here in Taupo; even on the in-lap for the shootout lap, I saw fans along the whole fence, everyone clapping… it’s unbelievable. I’ve never experienced something like it, and it means a lot to me. Seeing all the fans wearing our merchandise and supporting me and the team – it’s crazy. I never thought something like this would happen in my life.”

Starting from P1 and P14, Race 8 saw Payne and Stanaway face fierce competition on the track. Payne initially led but faced tire issues, allowing Feeney to overtake him on lap 11, ultimately resulting in Payne finishing in P4. Stanaway had a solid start but failed to break into the top 10, initially crossing the line in P11. However, a late penalty saw him drop to P13.

Reflecting on his performance, Payne remained positive despite missing out on the top spot, stating, “Not too bad a result today… it’s good points, but probably not so good when you’re starting from first.” Acknowledging areas for improvement, he added, “We probably didn’t quite have the car today and struggled with the tyre life, but we’ll get there. We’re a work in progress and we’re not giving up at all.”

For Stanaway, following an impressive climb from P23 on the grid to P6 yesterday, reflected on the highs and lows, stating, “Bit of a mixed weekend for us, just held back by qualifying form…. But this weekend has been probably a career highlight for me in terms of support from fans here at the track. I’ve never felt that much support before – it’s been incredible.”

With over 67,000 fans in attendance, the ITM Taupō Super400 saw Stanaway rise to 4th place in the driver championships, closely followed by Payne in 5th, with Penrite Racing maintaining 2nd in the team standings.

Looking ahead, the Supercars series now heads to Perth for the next event scheduled from May 17-19. As the season goes on, Stanaway, Payne, and the entire Penrite Racing team are determined to keep improving and aim to win the championship.