Rollercoaster weekend brings season to a close.

It was a weekend to forget as Penrite Racing rounded out the 2024 Repco Supercars Championship at the VAILO Adelaide 500. 

Despite the sequence of unfortunate events, Penrite Racing were able to hold onto fourth in the Teams Championship. Matt Payne ended the season in sixth position, with Richie Stanaway finishing the season in 19th position. 

The Adelaide 500 is always a standout event on the calendar, with the 2024 event proving no different. The festivities began on Wednesday with the inaugural Adelaide 500 track to town providing a unique spectacle for Adelaide locals.  

The Adelaide 500 is a unique event, as it is run over four days. Thursday would play host to a single practice session with both cars focusing on race programs.  

The heat began to rise as Friday approached. The day began with another 30-minute practice session before an all-important qualifying session that evening. Race 23 qualifying lasted all of five minutes before a litany of incidents red-flagged the session. 

Richie Stanaway was purple to the middle sector, before coming unstuck at the notorious Turn 8. Richie had clipped the armco barrier on the inside of the corner, forcing the car wide and finding the concrete barrier on the outside. Despite returning to the pits, it was evident that the car had endured serious damage underneath the skin.  

Richie’s crash was however overshadowed, with Cam Hill, and then David Reynolds both crashing at the same spot to more spectacular effect. The session was then red flagged, as a flurry of work in the pits sprung to life.  

Had the session gone green once more, Richie’s car would have been able to compete, however, the session was initially suspended. The hope was that the session could be continued on Saturday morning, however the decision was made by the stewards to ultimately declare the session. 

Matt Payne would thus be classified in sixth, with Richie just missing out on a Shootout berth in 11th. 

Saturday was forecast to be the hottest day of the race weekend with the temperature expected to reach a scorching 36 degrees. After taking part in the morning’s practice session, there was concerns over Richie’s condition from the crash the day prior.  

Following an assessment from the Supercars medical team, it was deemed that Richie was displaying delayed symptoms of concussion and the decision was made for Richie not to compete in Race 23.  

2025 recruit Kai Allen was earmarked to take part in Richie’s place, going as far as completing a seat fitting in Car 26. As the race neared closer, it became more evident that Kai would not be allowed dispensation to compete in both Supercars and Super 2. Penrite Racing co-driver Dale Wood would ultimately be the one to step into Car 26, his spot confirmed merely an hour before the green flag. 

By virtue of not competing in qualifying, Dale would start the race from the pit lane. Following his shootout lap, Matt Payne earned himself a second-row start, starting Race 23 from fourth. 

Saturday’s race was a true test of endurance as the mercury began to rise. Amazingly, the race was void of any major incident, the only brief stoppage coming as Dale found himself in the Turn 5 gravel.  

As the race entered the final stint, it was evident that Matt could catch the two Tickford cars, both struggling for tyre life. After making light work of Thomas Randle, Matt then set his sights on Cam Waters, who was occupying the final podium spot. 

As the laps ticked down, so too did the gap between the pair. The final laps were run at a frenetic pace with Matt urged to catch and pass Waters.  

Unfortunately Matt would just come up short, attempting a move at Turn 7 on the final lap which ultimately did not pay off. Matt would have to settle for fourth, but not through lack of trying.  

Dale’s one goal was to bring the car home safely, and that’s exactly what he did. He would finish the race in 22nd, banking valuable points for the Teams Championship.  

Richie Stanaway was unfortunately ruled out from the rest of the weekend on Sunday morning, urged to recover and rest to aid his concussion symptoms. Following approval overnight, Kai Allen was granted an exemption from Motorsport Australia to compete across both categories, thus allowing him to debut with the team earlier than expected.  

Qualifying was once again halted due to a large crash at Turn 8. Jaxon Evans found the fence in similar fashion to the three cars on Friday night, bringing an early end to the session once more.  

Purple to the middle sector, Matt Payne was one of the many hard luck stories, unable to complete his lap that would have vaulted him into the Shootout. As such, Matt would line up in 11th for the afternoon’s race. Across the garage, a similar story would unfold for Kai, not able to complete his lap before the untimely red flag. Kai would start his first race for the team in 19th. 

Unfortunately, Race 24 would go down as a series of unfortunate events. Matt Payne was an early victim of the complete chaos, as he was escorted wide at Turn 11 by Nick Percat. Car 19 would ultimately be stuck in the tire barrier, and once extracted, the lack of structural integrity sent the bonnet flying and completely remove itself from the car.  

Despite the newfound airflow, Matt would drive around in last position. However, finishing the race proved instrumental in banking valuable points.  

Kai’s debut was truly a baptism of fire, having to pit off sequence multiple times through no fault of his own. He was hit from behind early in the race, inflicting major damage to the rear diffuser. This was exacerbated later in the race as he was once more hit from behind, forcing yet another unscheduled pitstop. 

As the 2024 season comes to a close, Penrite Racing would like to extend their thanks to all our loyal supporters. We can’t wait to see you in 2025.