Tander ends his Supercars driving career with one championship, six Bathurst 1000 wins, and 58 race wins across more than two decades.
It’s expected, but not yet confirmed, that Tander has hung up the helmet to move into a full-time TV commentary role next season.
Tander has in recent years mixed co-driving duties with the role of analyst on the broadcasts.
The 48-year-old has gone out a winner, having lifted the Peter Brock Trophy alongside Matt Payne last month at Mount Panorama.
“Even when I went to Bathurst this year, even before the cars had even ran, I basically went as though I’m enjoying it as if it’s my last one,” said Tander on Fox Sports.
“So, I took every aspect of it in as though you’re enjoying it for the last time.
“I hadn’t fully made my mind up at that point, but it was great to have the kids there, to have Sian (Allison), my partner, there, to enjoy that moment.
“And obviously when we won, it was like ‘This is quite cool, this is really enjoyable’.
“It was a nice fitting way to say that’s it, done and dusted.”
Despite the win, Tander said his final decision wasn’t made until the weeks after the race.
“It’s not totally a mic drop,” said Tander.
“A few journos in the Sunday night press conference were going ‘I was expecting you to do the mic drop thing’, but you don’t make big decisions in those moments.
“I never fully made the final decision until probably a week or two after Bathurst. I’ve been really, really fortunate. Incredibly fortunate.
“I still remember as a 21-year-old kid qualifying 16th at Phillip Island, next to Dick Johnson, my very first ever race, stalling it on the grid and I was last to the first corner.
“Not a great start to my Supercars career, so to be able to end it like that with a win at Bathurst with Grove Racing is a much better way to finish it than the way we started.”
Tander said it was not a difficult decision to make.
Three of his Bathurst 1000 wins came as a co-driver after unceremoniously concluding his full-time driving career with Garry Rogers Motorsport at the end of 2018.
“I’m seven years in as a co-driver, and even when I started as a co-driver and I was at Triple Eight with Roland Dane, he said you’ve got four years and that’s it, you’re no good after that,” Tander recalled.
“I’m really proud that in seven years as a co-driver, I won Bathurst three times with two different drivers and two different teams.
“Pretty much everyone other than Shane (van Gisbergen) I shared with their first Bathurst win.
“Obviously with Bargs (Jason Bargwanna) and myself it was both our first wins, with Will Davison, with Nick (Percat), with Shane, and now with Matt (Payne), to share their first wins and help them on their journey and wherever that may take them, I’m proud of that.
“I’m really proud of building teams and being part of teams. Certainly, over the last three years, it’s been less about driving the car and more about building the people and building the team has been more enjoyable for me.
“Driving the car is still cool, it’s still fun, you still enjoy it, and I’ll probably still do it at some stages, jumping in for a ride day here and there, but I’m 48 now. I always said if I get north of 40 when I was young… I’ll be happy with that.”
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