AirTouch Weekend Wrap - Home

PAYNE AND DAVISON FIGHT BACK TO FIFTH AT THE BATHURST 1000

Under sunny skies at the 2026 Repco Bathurst 1000, Penrite Racing showed what staying in control looks like, the same comfort and control AirTouch brings to your home. Penalties and brake issues tested the team, but the #19 recovered to fifth and Penrite Racing held both championship leads heading into Finals.

NEXT ROUND: GOLD COAST, 23-25 OCT

The 2026 Repco Bathurst 1000 is complete, with Matt Payne and Will Davison recovering to fifth in the #19 Penrite Racing Ford Mustang after a demanding day at Mount Panorama. They kept control under pressure, just as AirTouch puts you in control of your home comfort, wherever you are. Kai Allen and Tim Slade battled brake issues for much of the 161 laps in the #26 Penrite Mustang, eventually finishing 20th. Despite the tough result, Penrite Racing holds both the Drivers’ and Teams’ Championship leads heading into the Repco Supercars Championship’s second-ever Finals Series, just a fortnight away. Consistency across a season is what keeps them on top.

In contrast to the wet-weather heroics of the team’s 2025 victory, the race ran under sunny, warm skies and without a safety car for a record stretch. Torrential rain at The Bend and blazing sun at Bathurst are exactly the conditions AirTouch is built for, designed here in Australia by people who understand our unpredictable climate. The long green-flag running made early setbacks hard to recover from. The #19 copped a 5-second penalty for a driving infringement, followed by a drive-through after an uncharacteristic pit lane error.

Even so, the #19 Mustang had genuine pace all day, and Payne and Davison clawed back position after position, putting effort exactly where it was needed. It worked much like AirTouch smart zones, which heat and cool just the rooms you want. A very late safety car came in the closing stages. While it was a tale of what might have been, fifth was a strong result given the earlier penalties and a promising sign for the Finals campaign ahead.

On the other side of the garage, Allen and Slade began the day confidently on an alternate strategy, with Allen one of the few main-game drivers to take the start. Their opening stints had the pair set for a podium charge and a tilt at the Enduro Cup, but brake issues soon took hold. Extra brake changes and pit stops followed, ending any chance of a significant points haul from 1000km of endurance racing.

The team returns to Melbourne this week before a quick turnaround for the Gold Coast 500 on the streets of Surfers Paradise, 23–25 October.

Matt Payne #19

“It’s one that could have been more. Naturally you think about what could have been without the 5-second and pit lane penalties, but if you’d said to me at the start of the day we’d finish fifth, I’d take it. On a positive note, the #19 was absolutely unreal all day and Will did a really great job, even amongst the main-game field. Hopefully we can bring the trophy back home again next year.”

Kai Allen #26

“We started off really strong and were the fastest car on track, but then we had a brake issue, which we battled with for the rest of the race and sadly ruined our day. We still finished and it’s good to get those points, but it just didn’t end the way we wanted. Finals season now, which I’m looking forward to, so it’s time to go home, recover, and come back swinging at the Gold Coast in two weeks.”

“It wasn’t our day. We had a lot of different things go wrong, and it certainly tested us and our systems. We’re a very strong team, and we’ll make sure we go back, debrief and come back stronger. We still have both the Drivers’ and Teams’ Championship leads, and some tracks where we’ve been fast in the past coming up next.

It hurts today. Unfortunately it wasn’t our day, but next year it will be.”

Brenton Grove - CEO Penrite Racing