Perth Continues to Challenge on Day 3

Day 3 of the Repco Supercars Championships in Perth brought another round of tests for Penrite Racing. After making overnight adjustments, Penrite Racing utilised their data to explore new ways to maximise their car’s performance, resulting in mixed outcomes during Practice 3. Matt Payne secured a P9 finish, followed by Richie Stanaway in P17.

Qualifying presented fresh obstacles. Payne showed promise in Session 1 with a strong P5 finish. However, both drivers faced difficulties in Session 2, preventing them from advancing to the final round and leaving them to start Race 10 from P16 and P17 on the grid. Nevertheless, the team remained optimistic, again focusing on data analysis to help guide their improvements.

Starting from positions 16 and 17, Payne and Stanaway were determined to excel on the demanding track. They confronted the challenge directly, navigating the hot conditions. With quick pit stops and strategic driving, Payne secured P9, while Stanaway improved to P12— an impressive move from their starting positions, marking them as the biggest movers on the grid. This was a positive outcome for Penrite Racing, especially considering Stanaway’s crash the day before and the extensive overnight work required to restore the car.

Reflecting on the weekend, Payne expressed satisfaction with the team’s performance, acknowledging the challenges they had faced. “Not too bad of a Sunday for us, good points for the team and the championships. Overall, it’s been a trying weekend; we haven’t really had the speed we wanted, so to get some positive results is encouraging,” he remarked.

Stanaway echoed similar sentiments, stating, “It’s been a challenging weekend for us, but I feel like we have learned a lot. We’ve been testing a lot of things with the car to try and take the next step, but the nature of trying to move forward is that sometimes you end up taking a step back. But the positive thing is that we have a lot of information and data to take away from the event, and I think we can use that as we move forward.”

Despite dropping to 4th in the team championship standings, with Payne maintaining 5th and Stanaway slipping to 9th individually, Penrite Racing remains undeterred.

As they prepare for Round 5 in Darwin from June 14-16, Penrite Racing focuses on refining strategies. Armed with the experience gained in Perth, the team is set to confront the challenges ahead and return stronger than ever.