It was the decision that left V8 Supercars fans cold and stunned the racing grid.
Marcos Ambrose, once the undisputed king of the category, was leaving the sport just two races into his long-awaited return.
With the support of one of the world's racing titans, Roger Penske, and legendary touring car driver Dick Johnson, Ambrose occupied a privileged position.
So why would the 2003 and 2004 Supercars champion walk away?
Finally, Ambrose has explained.
"I can't deliver what's expected of me as that lead driver in the circumstances that are around me," he said.
It appears the weight of expectation has sat uncomfortably on Ambrose's shoulders since his return.
After finishing 12th in the season-opening Clipsal 500 and lacklustre results in the non-championship round at the Australian Grand Prix, he'd had enough.
He wasn't cutting the mustard and he wasn't enjoying it.
The V8 Supercars championship had evolved, and Ambrose felt the learning curve was too steep.
"The feel that I'm getting from the car is not what it used to be," he said.
"Testing restrictions, tyre restrictions, the weekend formats are pretty condensed and so I'm learning on the fly.
Ambrose said it was not an easy decision to give up his full-time drive, committing to Bathurst and the endurance races.
"I don't want to get out of the car," he said.
"I love racing cars, that's what I do for a living but the team can't wait for a driver to get re-acclimatised."
"Races cost money, serious money, and as a minimum I will be doing the co-driver races for them and the co-driver testing during the race weekends and we'll just see how it goes."
The Tasmanian, who is at his local Symmons Plains circuit to support replacement driver Scott Pye, said he had not contemplated a return to NASCAR.
"We're going to have a really good, hard look at ourselves after Symmons Plains and see how our first three races have gone and we'll start making calls from there."
"We're not hiding anything from anybody, we just don't know how it's going to play out."
Share
