The Supercars rookie comes into his first full season with four main game races under his belt – two of which are Bathurst 1000 starts.
However, his most recent outing came in unusual circumstances on the streets of Adelaide when he replaced the concussed Richie Stanaway in the 2024 season finale.
With a Super2 Series title to his name and some rare solo Gen3 experience, Payne has tipped his teammate to start off strong.
“It’s definitely going to be cool for him. I remember my first year and you’re just taking it in. The first few rounds you’re just trying to learn everything,” Payne told Speedcafe.
“Luckily, he’s already done a race, which is a very rare occurrence, a full-time seat race effectively. It’s bloody awesome for him to be in it.
“He’s obviously worked really hard to get to where he is and it’s cool to see him achieve it.
“He definitely is putting in the hard work now to make sure that he sort of consolidates where he is and can show everyone what he’s got.”
The 19-year-old was part of the Dick Johnson Racing fold and made his Supercars debut with the team in 2023 as a wildcard alongside the ‘Swiss Miss’ Simona de Silvestro.
That year, they finished 20th. A year later, Allen joined Will Davison to claim 12th in the Great Race.
Dick Johnson Racing did not take up a contract option on Allen for 2025, which allowed the South Australian to pursue a seat at Grove Racing where he replaced then-PremiAir Racing-bound Stanaway.
Now in his third season, Payne followed a similar path – albeit with even less experience than Allen to the same point as Supercars rookies.
Payne, who had just one Bathurst 1000 start before going full-time in Supercars, has tipped Allen to find his feet quickly.
“I wouldn’t be shocked if he was on it pretty quick,” said Payne.
“He has done a lot of racing in Supercars, even Super2 and Super3, so he’s got enough mileage under his belt to be capable of transitioning into these cars pretty quickly.
“For him, it’s just about getting your head around the first couple of rounds and also racing everyone and sort of understanding how everyone works and then just going from there.
“I don’t see why he can’t be on it from the get-go. He’s definitely one of the most well-prepared rookies we’ve had come in for a while, so it’s gonna be pretty exciting for him.
“He’s a good young lad, he’s funny, he’s good to hang around.
“We have a bit of a laugh with the things we’ve done so far, so it’s nice to see that side of him, but I also know he does take his racing very seriously.”
Allen cut 100 laps on Wednesday at Sydney Motorsport Park where he was eighth fastest in the morning and 18th in the afternoon.
The youngster made a small improvement between sessions, setting a 1:31.1420s in the first instance and a 1:31.0386s in the second outing.
Not even 20 years old, the Mount Gambier-born driver said he’s eager to begin his Supercars career in earnest.
“I’ve been working towards this pretty much my whole life,” said Allen.
“I had a really good grounding through go-karting and then into Super3 and Super2, so I feel like I’ve probably done the right path to get there.
“Yes, it’s daunting, I’m the young kid on the grid, but I think if I didn’t do what I’ve done in the junior years I don’t think I’d have that confidence leading into the first round.
“It’s going to be hard. It’s probably one of the most competitive racing series in the world. We’ve got some very talented drivers and really good teams.
“It’s going to be tough but I’m up for the fight. I’m excited, I believe I’ve got a really good team around me.
“I’m really excited to work with Matt. This is his third year now, he’s starting to get quite experienced and then I can sort of bring in the young side as well. We’re both working really well together.
“I’m excited to see how we go.”
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