Holden hero Mark Skaife has shunted any retirement talk off the public agenda for the foreseeable future, saying he remains as motivated as ever to conquer Bathurst for the sixth time next week.
The five-time Bathurst 1000 champion admits he is as excited about taking on Mount Panorama as he was when he first raced at the mountain in 1987.
Now 41, Skaife's assessment going into his 22nd Bathurst was he'll be as good there as he's ever been.
"I still feel it's a great gauge for how motivated I am and I still feel the same way as when I was a young bloke going there in my early 20s," Skaife said.
"I'm eager to get there, and eager to get on and do a really good job.
"I feel like I'll be as good at Bathurst as I've ever been.
"I was on the front row of the grid last year, our speed at Bathurst has always been good, it's a place I love, it's a matter of stepping up to the grand final."
Retirement talk has been riding shotgun with Skaife all year, despite him being consistently fast in qualifying, occupying a mid-table position in the drivers' championship and not being the oldest driver in the series.
He does not have a contract with his Holden Racing Team beyond this year, though he said nothing should be read into that as to how likely he was to keep racing.
If Skaife wants to drive on, HRT appears certain to let him and when he decides to eventually retire, it would be on his terms.
"My thing has always been there's an area of flexibility to determine where I go going forward," Skaife said.
"The day I think I'm not going forward and I don't enjoy it, then I wouldn't be doing it.
"I haven't got my brain around that (my future) at the moment.
"I've just got my head down and doing the best I can for this particular race and to finish the year off well.
"I know I'm plenty fast enough when I'm in the right frame of mind."
Skaife last won at Bathurst in 2005, and this year has one of his best chances for victory.
Teamed with championship leader Garth Tander, the pair produced a remarkable win at the Phillip Island lead-up last month.
Tander came up with one of the drives of his career to secure the race win, coming from a lap down to hound Ford's Jamie Whincup into error while leading the 500km race.
His undoubted speed, allied to Skaife's experience around Bathurst, makes them an intriguing and hard-to-beat combination when practice starts next Thursday.
Tander has won only once at Bathurst - when he paired with Jason Bargwanna in 2000.
Three of Skaife's Bathurst victories have come since then.
The pair's Commodore will also have a special livery to mark Holden's 60th anniversary.
