Shane van Gisbergen is delighted to officially be crowned Supercars champion for the second time, but admits the feeling is a little "bittersweet", after a late puncture ruined his Bathurst 1000 hopes.
Sitting second in the late stages of 'The Great Race', the Kiwi was chasing Chaz Mostert's Holden, when his tyre delaminated and he was forced to pit, eventually finishing 18th.
Mostert was unlikely to have been caught, regardless of the tyre failure, but 'SVG' and teammate Garth Tander were denied a third straight podium, after a second in 2019 and a race win last year.
But the Kiwi was able to put that disappointment aside and celebrate his second series title, after guaranteeing victory last month at Sydney Motorsport Park.
"It's bittersweet," van Gisbergen says. "We really tried to win that race, but congrats to Chaz and Lee [Holdsworth] and their team, they were super fast.
"It's been an awesome year otherwise, I've got to thank all the legends at Triple Eight and we'll drink a few out of this [the championship trophy].
"I wish my family was here and all my friends as well, and I wish I could go home to celebrate, but I've been locked out of my own country, which sucks."
The 2016 champion dominated the season, winning the first six races and 14 in all, scoring 23 podiums and six pole positions to finish 211 points ahead of retiring teammate Jamie Whincup.
"We raced tracks at the start of the year that suited our car, and that's where we were able to get a few wins on the board and build momentum, and grab a great lead at the start of the season," he says.
"Unfortunately, we didn't get the result we wanted today, but it is what it is. I was driving as fast as I could and probably pushed a bit too hard, and we ended up with a tyre failure late in the race."
Soon-to-be boss Whincup bowed out as a full-time driver with a fourth-place finish, along with veteran co-driver Craig Lowndes.
"It was only starting to sink in on the last few laps that this would be the last time I'd be in a Supercar as a full-time driver," Whincup says. "That heavy-hearted feeling definitely started to settle in.
"We fought hard to get a podium today, but it just wasn't meant to be.
"I'm pretty proud of the day and what everyone has achieved over the last few weeks. It's more than acceptable to run fourth."
Whincup admits Mostert's flying Commodore was too good on the day.
"Even though the car was great, no one was touching No.25 [Mostert and Holdsworth] today, but my car was as good as the other cars on the podium.
"I owe this sport so much. I just come in to do my job and this sport, this team has done so much for me.
"I'll never be able to repay the debt, but I'll do what I can to bring on the next generation and give back to the sport, which has given so much to me."
Mostert's second Bathurst victory allowed him to leapfrog Will Davison in the championship standings and finish a career-best third.
