Round 2: AGP

The Penrite Racing team brought exceptional pace to the Melbourne SuperSprint, earning two podiums, and pulling off a series of exceptional fightback performances.

Matt Payne set the tone for the weekend with blistering speed in the second qualifying session of the event. With just eight minutes to set a lap and a single run to do it, Payne excelled in the high-pressure situation to take his first pole position of the 2026 season for race two of the weekend.

Payne displayed that excellent pace again in the opening race, climbing his way on to the podium from fourth on the grid. After two decisive moves to seize second on the road, Payne shadowed the race leader all the way to the end in a close-run affair.

Allen was an innocent bystander on the opening lap when he was turned around, but an incredible fightback saw him claw his way back from last in the field to finish in 11th in the 19-lap sprint.

Starting from pole position, Payne controlled the opening laps of race two before ultimately ceding the lead to a bold challenge from behind and consolidating strong points haul with his third consecutive runner-up result.

Allen stormed his way to the top five from 13th on the grid, before being left with nowhere to go with an incident at the final corner. Remarkably despite spinning from the contact and receiving rear damage, Allen again displayed his incredible race pace to climb back to fifth place by the chequered flag.

It was another stunning drive through the field for Allen in race three of the weekend, climbing up nine places and pushing the leading trio all the way the finish to bank a fourth-place result and another fastest lap. Payne was unfortunately an innocent victim in a lap one incident which resulted in a broken right-front upright and left-front damper.

In the weekend’s final race Payne had charged his way from seventh up to third place, but unfortunately suffered a left-front puncture through no fault of his own which plummeted him down the order to a 20th place result.

Allen was caught up in the turn one calamity, but smart driving ensured he was able to recover to pit lane for repairs. Upon the restart, Allen once again put on a masterclass in overtaking to climb from 19th to pick up ninth place.

After seven races in the 2026 season, Payne is now fourth in the Drivers’ Standings thanks to his strong results across the first half of the weekend, while Allen has climbed to eighth after his series of rallying performances.

Penrite Racing retained second in the Team’s Standings, earning a strong position in pit lane for the series’ return to longer races and pit stops at the next round in Taupō, New Zealand.

Matt Payne – Driver #19 Ford Mustang

“It was a bit of a mixed bag this weekend. We started really strong – two podiums across the two days and a pole in qualifying, so it felt like we were off to a flying start. Unfortunately it went a bit downhill from there.

The car had great pace all weekend, we just couldn’t quite convert it when it mattered. I got squeezed into an incident in Saturday’s race which took us out of contention, and then on Sunday I picked up a random puncture while running third, which was really disappointing. Absolutely gutted with how it finished, but there are plenty of positives to take away and some good points on the board. Now the focus shifts to the New Zealand rounds.”

Kai Allen – Driver #26 Ford Mustang

“Overall it was a really solid weekend. The car was the fastest I’ve had in my career, so massive credit to the team – it was absolutely flying. I must have passed around 40 cars across the weekend, maybe even more, so the pace was definitely there. We just couldn’t quite convert it into the results we wanted.

Now the focus shifts to Taupō. I’m excited to get over to New Zealand for the double-header. The potential in the car is huge, the team is on fire, and we’re ready to bring it.”

Brenton Grove, CEO, Grove

“Another promising weekend with incredible pace. I’m really proud of the work the entire team put in during the lead up to the event. We were able to show how fast our cars are with a pole and a couple of podiums.

It’s a shame we weren’t able to capitalise with more trophies, however the outlook is strong for the season and if we can continue to deliver fast cars we’ll continue to be at the pointy end of the field.”