Kiwi Supercars ace Matthew Payne reckons this weekend’s race at Sandown could just play into his hands. In the new-for-this-season finals format, Payne sits third of the seven remaining championship contenders on 4096 points behind Chaz Mostert (4120) and series leader Broc Feeney (4150).
Payne has one of the best records in the longer format races, most recently as the reigning Bathurst 1000 champion. The 23-year-old backed that win with a solid outcome at the Gold Coast 500 that included a top-five finish on Sunday despite a pit lane penalty.
“I like the longevity of the longer races, you really have to learn how to get the best out of them,” Payne told the Herald.
“You do two pit stops, so the crew get a bit of a chance to really make a gain in the pit lane. That also plays into the strategy, and I think our team is particularly good at choosing the right strategy, which is really good.
“That’s been one of our strengths this year. I also think doing longer stints works well for our car, and we’re usually pretty good at looking after the tyres.
“I definitely do like them [longer races] and it plays into our favour and I think that’s a good thing.”
A small irritant for Payne and the team this season has been his qualifying pace. Normally able to get inside the top 10 shoot-out, moving forward from there has on occasion been a problem.
However, Payne’s ability to make up ground and pass other drivers during the longer races has been a mitigating factor in his success so far this season.
“We have struggled a bit in qualifying, but at Sandown you can race forward quite a bit. If you have a better car than a lot of people, you can pass, so that changes the game a little bit.
“The last round [Gold Coast] qualifying for us was pretty good. We put ourselves into the top four and that’s where you can race from.
“It’s all about trying to put yourself in a position to score points, and being up the front for qualifying is the most important.
“Even if we do get stuck towards the back end of the 10, I think we can still race forward,” said Payne.
The Kiwi’s team of mechanics and engineers have given him a reliable and consistently quick car all season, and Payne is confident they’ll be doing the same for him this weekend. Having a good, fast car underneath him means he can concentrate on racing, gaining points and getting into the final four for the last round.
“Car preparation and assembly have been really good, and the boys are always doing a really good job to make sure it’s not going to break down and nothing’s going to fall off it.
“This year has been really good. We haven’t had any mechanicals that have costed us big points or anything like that. That’s definitely something that’s comforting – driving out of the garage every time knowing that the car’s good and it’s going to be straight run to the finish,” he said.
Sandown Raceway hosts two 250km races this weekend, and come Sunday afternoon only four drivers of the eligible seven will proceed to the Grand Final at Adelaide to potentially win the 2025 championship.
The circuit is fast and flowing with a couple of excellent passing opportunities that will play well into Payne’s strengths of consistent race pace, his ability to pass, clean driving and good tyre management.
“We just try and approach each weekend the same, and that’s been working for us this year. We’re trying to keep everything consistent.
“I think if you start looking at it anything differently, or changing too much, you’ll probably fall into the trap [of looking too hard for improvements] and start making some mistakes,” said Payne.