Grove impressed by Allen's role in crucial Adelaide cameo

Kai Allen may have been thrown into the deep end at the VAILO Adelaide 500, but Penrite Racing boss Stephen Grove believes the teenager took away plenty ahead of his first full-time Supercars season.

The 2023 Super2 champion scored a belated call-up for the final race of the 2024 Repco Supercars Championship in the place of Richie Stanaway, who had been ruled out with concussion.

Allen was initially announced to race on Saturday, but required approval from Super2 teams and was ineligible to race. Dale Wood stepped in instead, racing Stanaway's car to 22nd.

An overnight rule tweak paved the way for Allen to race on Sunday, with the Mount Gambier local given the green light from Grove to "have fun."

Allen, who had three previous Gen3 starts with Dick Johnson Racing, qualified 19th ahead of Cameron Hill, James Courtney, Aaron Love, Jaxon Evans and Bryce Fullwood.

After a promising start, Allen sustained significant rear end damage in the opening laps, and came home 22nd, which proved vital in Penrite Racing's mission to beat DJR to fourth in the teams' championship.

The efforts weren't lost on Grove, who was pleased to give Allen an early look at the big time.

"It was a tough weekend, but the big positive is that we have finished fourth in the teams’ championship. That’s a move up for us," Grove said.

"Kai Allen is joining us next year and got an early run in the car after Richie’s crash. He learned a lot in one of the toughest races of the year.

"We had some bad luck with Matt Payne, who should have been third in qualifying on Saturday, and when you start back in the field you get beaten up.

"We have shown the cars are fast and that’s the good thing. Now we’re working on next year."

The outgoing Stanaway was also relieved that Wood and Allen were able to help Penrite Racing retain fourth amid his absence, saying: "For us to be fourth in the teams' championship, I think is a solid result.

"It's such a competitive series, everyone's developing a lot and moving forward, and I feel like we've been a part of that as a team and progressed a lot to maintain that spot in the teams' championship.

"Hopefully, as I step out, he team's set up for the opportunity to move further forward in the future, and I wish them the best of luck."

Allen was one of two ring-ins for the Adelaide weekend, with Super2 teammate Cooper Murray also make an early debut for Erebus Motorsport following Jack Le Brocq's departure for the birth of his first child.

Allen and Murray will commence their 2025 Supercars campaigns at the opening round in Sydney on February 21-23, with the rising stars to complete a test day on February 19.