On a day when Counties Manukau local Shane van Gisbergen bid farewell to Supercars, Pukekohe’s Matt Payne announced himself as the heir apparent as he claimed a maiden Supercars race win on the streets of Adelaide.
Payne, who has enjoyed a terrific finish to his rookie campaign, took a lights to flag win in a brilliant display in his Penrite Mustang.
The former Toyota Racing Series champion has been tipped for a big future in the sport and underlined that potential with a flawless performance on the day the sport’s most dominant driver of the past decade bowed out.
It was a disappointing finish for Van Gisbergen, who missed a chance to win a fourth series title on Saturday when he was taken out on the opening lap in an unavoidable incident.
His fortune wasn’t much better on Sunday as his race was ruined with mechanical failures and he watched Brodie Kostecki wrap up the championship.
Van Gisbergen heads to the United States for a foray into NASCAR in 2024 while Payne will look to take another step forward and contend for a championship Kiwis have won in seven of the past nine seasons.
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