2024 Boost Mobile Gold Coast 500

Penrite Racing left to rue missed opportunities despite strong weekend. 

Penrite Racing spent the majority of the Boost Mobile Gold Coast 500 weekend at the pointy end of the field, but ultimately left the event empty-handed. 

Richie Stanaway & Matt Payne claimed a provisional pole each in a weekend that was arguably the most consistent of the team’s 2024 campaign. 

Matt Payne reclaimed fifth in the drivers championship, with Richie Stanaway moving up one position to 16th. Importantly. Penrite Racing were able to vault Dick Johnson Racing & Matt Stone Racing to reclaim fourth position in the teams championship. 

It was a competitive start to Friday, with both Penrite Racing Mustangs featuring in the top ten of Practice One. This form continued into the second practice session, with Matt Payne ending the day in third position. 

Saturday began with a short-fire 15-minute qualifying session. The session ended under red flag conditions following an incident involving multiple cars, but not before Richie Stanaway would put in a lap time that would earn Car 26 provisional pole position. Matt Payne ensured a double-berth in the Boost Mobile Top Ten Shootout, placing Car 19 in sixth position. 

The Shootout began with James Courtney setting the early benchmark. Matt Payne was set to eclipse everyone up until that point, however an untimely downshift and rear locking sent Car 19 down the escape road, albeit with no damage. Payne would line up P9. 

As the last car out in the Shootout, Richie Stanaway was right on the benchmark set by Cam Waters. Richie would ultimately miss out on Pole Position by merely a tenth, however still lining up on the front row. 

Race 21 started cleanly for one side of the garage, with Stanaway maintaining second place and following Waters into the first chicane. In contrast, Matt Payne was forced into the wall just after the start line yet escaped damage from the incident. 

Race 21 was a somewhat straightforward affair, with both cars ultimately not having the pace to go with the leading pack. Payne muscled his way through the field to end the day in fourth, with Stanaway finishing in ninth. 

Sunday began in similar fashion to the previous day, with the team once again claiming provisional pole. This time however, it was Matt Payne in Car 19 that would be the last car out in the Shootout. Richie Stanaway was able to make it a second double Shootout berth in as many days for the team, ending the session in ninth. 

After showers overnight, cloud cover and UV were the talking points for the Top Ten Shootout. As the last car out, Matt Payne should in theory have had the best track conditions of everyone. However, this was not to be as the cloud cover dispersed, allowing for the Gold Coast sun to beat down on the Surfers Paradise circuit. Payne would cross the line with the sixth fastest time, with Richie Stanaway set to line up directly behind his teammate in position eight. However, an impeding penalty for Richie in the previous qualifying session demoted Car 26 to P11. 

Race 22 was hit with an early safety car appearance following a lap one incident and subsequent track blockage. Both Penrite Racing Mustangs were not involved and left the scene unscathed. 

Both cars were circulating in the top ten for the entirety of race. If not for a slow pitstop, Matt Payne could have finished higher than his ninth position. Richie Stanaway was promoted to seventh post-race following a penalty to Le Brocq, as the team celebrated another dual-top ten finish, despite the disappointment of no silverware. 

The attention now turns to the final round of the Repco Supercars Championship on the streets of Adelaide. Adelaide is the scene of Matt Payne’s first Repco Supercars Championship win, as the team will look to end Season 2024 on a high.