Darwin delivers for Penrite Racing with podiums aplenty

Penrite Racing has surged to the top of the Supercars Team Championship standings following another outstanding weekend at Hidden Valley Raceway.

The team quickly adapted to the unusually cool and misty conditions on Friday, with Matt Payne qualifying fourth and Kai Allen seventh for the opening race. Payne settled into fourth on the opening lap, while Allen immediately advanced to fifth. Both drivers extended their opening stints, positioning themselves for a strong charge in the closing stages.

Restarting their push from sixth and seventh, the Penrite Racing pair carved their way through the field together. A late one-lap Safety Car period set up a final-lap sprint to the finish, but with few opportunities to attack, Allen crossed the line in second ahead of Payne following him through to secure third, delivering another double podium for the team.

Race Two saw both drivers gain a position in the early laps after starting third and fifth respectively. Payne spent much of the opening stint applying constant pressure to the race leader before pitting on lap 20 and serving a five-second penalty for a false start.

Allen’s impressive long-run pace proved decisive. After stopping on lap 27, he executed a successful overcut to move into third place, then passed Payne for second on lap 37 before hunting down and overtaking the race leader.

While Payne briefly slipped to fourth after a determined defensive effort, strong tyre management and race pace allowed him to secure fourth place at the finish.

Allen was the last of the frontrunners to make his final stop, pitting on lap 48 while maintaining the effective race lead. From there, he controlled the race to perfection, pulling out a nine-second winning margin to claim his second Supercars victory – and the first in his newly built Penrite Mustang.

Starting Race Three from the front row, Payne made a strong getaway and held position in the lead group, while Allen launched an impressive recovery from 12th on the grid to ninth by the end of the opening lap.

Continuing a trend that has become a hallmark of his season, Allen committed to an alternative strategy with an early stop on lap 14. The undercut proved highly effective, helping him climb to seventh before his second stop and eventually sixth by the finish through excellent fuel and tyre management.

At the front, Payne made a decisive move for the lead on lap 16 and built a margin before stopping on lap 21. The overcut strategy left him effectively third, but a bold overtaking move on lap 36 restored him to second place. From there, Payne remained firmly in contention, shadowing the race leader and maintaining pressure until the race concluded behind the Safety Car. He finished second, with Allen crossing the line in sixth.

A weekend highlighted by genuine car speed has propelled Penrite Racing to the lead of the Team Championship standings. Payne has reduced the gap to the championship leader to just 15 points in the drivers’ standings, while Allen continues to strengthen his hold on fifth – closing in on those above him.

The Supercars Championship now heads to the streets of Townsville for the next round, taking place from 10-12 July.

Matt Payne – Driver #19 Ford Mustang

“Well that wasn’t too bad a weekend to say the very least. Super happy to come away with the two podiums, unfortunately just couldn’t convert that into a race win. Thankful for the team for preparing such a good car, and feels even better to be rolling into Townsville leading the Teams’ Championship. Ready to rest up and do it again in a couple of weeks.”

Kai Allen – Driver #26 Ford Mustang

“Wow what a weekend that was for me. So happy to come away with two podiums and convert one of them into my second ever race win. Grateful to team, their efforts with the car all weekend – keen to keep training hard in the lead up to Townsville.”

Brenton Grove, CEO, Grove

“Darwin saw success for Penrite Racing and it was also rewarding to see Kai secure the second win of his career on Saturday in what was a really impressive drive.

“We were on the podium in every race across the weekend, but we know we didn’t get everything right and cost ourselves some valuable points with some execution errors across the weekend. Our entire crew knows what to do and they’ll be working incredibly diligently to ensure we bounce back in Townsville and deliver the consistency of execution that’s gotten us to this point. Our cars are fast, but it’s up to all of us now to continue to deliver our best every weekend.”