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Supercars veteran James Courtney has one more box to tick before he retires from the sport: a Bathurst 1000 victory.
With the finish line of his career around the turn, Supercars veteran James Courtney knows it's now or never for a maiden Bathurst 1000 win.
In the two decades he has competed in the sport, Courtney has claimed a championship but not once enjoyed a victory at Mount Panorama.
The 2010 champion has four Bathurst podiums across 18 starts, finishing second in 2007 and third on three occasions (2006, 2008, 2019).
His Blanchard Racing seat is up for grabs at the end of 2025 and the 44-year-old knows his window for a breakthrough Bathurst win is closing.
Courtney "accidentally" retired on live television in July before coyly saying he was open to extending his full-time drive.
"I'm a glutton for punishment, I guess," Courtney told AAP.
"I managed to win all our other marquee events, and this is the one that's eluded me. I've got two more shots at this as a lead driver.
"Other sports, like with football codes, you go into each weekend with a 50-50 chance of winning.
"For us, we're one of 25 guys that go out there so the odds are stacked against you to start with.
"That's what makes winning so special, and that's why you have to savour those moments, because in motorsport, there's more bad moments, more bad stories than there are good."
Courtney will link up again with Jack Perkins for the pair's fifth crack at the sport's Great Race together, after finishing sixth with young co-driver Zak Best in his most recent Bathurst outing.
"I suppose it puts a bit more pressure onto it going in because I know there's limited time now, and that's why I was pushing really hard to make sure I got Jack on board," Courtney said.
"The last four or five years, I've had first-timers as co-drivers at Bathurst and we've had things go wrong.
"I really wanted these last couple of years to count and have my best shot, and my best shot is with an experienced co-driver like Jack."
A win at Bathurst will also end an eight-year drought for Courtney.
He last came out on top in 2016 and has battled to replicate his 2010 success with Dick Johnson Racing.
Courtney has yet to claim a podium finish since moving from Tickford Racing at the end of last season.
"A lot of people are saying, 'Your career's been so long, have you got something else you want to do?' but I don't think there's ever, ever going to be anything that will replace that emotion," Courtney said.
"When you're watching the red light, waiting for it to go out, there's 25 other idiots trying to run into you, and you're about to do 300 kilometres-an-hour for 1000 kilometres.
"That level of excitement, you're never going to be able to replicate.
"That's what keeps me coming back. If I wasn't aging, I'll do it forever."
