Neal considering retirement from BTCC at the end of 2020
Three-time British Touring Car champion Matt Neal could hang up his helmet and retire at the end of this season
The 53-year-old veteran, who celebrated his 700th BTCC start at Oulton Park in August, has been weighing up the decision for some time, but admitted that it could still go either way.
It is understood that Neal's deliberations stem from the commercial issues facing Honda, for which Neal's family-owned Team Dynamics squad runs the official team in the BTCC, in the current economic climate.
"We don't know yet," Neal told Autosport.
"But if I do retire, then I've had a good run and I can't complain."
Neal stressed that regardless of whether he continues racing, Dynamics will continue to field Civic Type Rs in the BTCC.
Neal's team-mate Dan Cammish, who narrowly lost the 2019 title, is third in the 2020 standings heading into the final round at Brands Hatch, with a very real shot at the title.
And, if Neal does step away, he could be replaced by his fellow three-time champion Gordon Shedden, who won his trio of BTCC crowns in Dynamics-run Hondas before joining the World Touring Car Cup in 2018-19.
Shedden was poised to make a BTCC comeback this season as substitute for Neal, who was recovering from mountain-bike injuries sustained during the winter, before the coronavirus pandemic put the campaign on hold.
"The team would carry on - oh yeah," said Neal.
"We'd try and run Dan, and maybe another driver - it could be 'Flash' [Shedden], it could be someone else."
It is not impossible that it could be Neal's son Henry, who has won this year's Touring Car Trophy in a BTCC-spec Civic, and has taken part in official BTCC test sessions.
That would make Neal Jr a third-generation BTCC driver, as grandfather and Dynamics founder Steve Neal was a BTCC ace in Minis in the 1960s.
"It's possible, but it's got to stack up commercially," said Matt Neal.
Neal added that he would prefer crowds to return to BTCC events before he makes his exit from the driving seat - in effect, a NASCAR-style 'farewell tour'.
"Of course I would," he said.
"I still get a good buzz off it - I've done it almost my whole adult life.
"If it is [his last season], it's going be a strange weekend in three weeks' time [at the Brands Hatch finale]."
BTCC could adopt new qualifying format again for 2021
Brands Hatch BTCC finale will take place despite lockdown
How the BTCC's new hybrid era aced its first test
Expectations were high for the start of the British Touring Car Championship’s hybrid power era, and despite nerves and problems to solve prior to its debut the new rules gained widespread approval. Here’s how the first test at Donington Park was passed and the thorough examinations that are to follow
The Ford BTCC superteam combining two reigning TOCA champions
Reigning BTCC champion Ash Sutton and Porsche Carrera Cup GB victor Dan Cammish form a potent line-up at the Motorbase-run NAPA Racing team as the series adopts hybrid power. With Sutton bringing the key components of his title-winning Laser Tools Racing set-up, and Cammish eager to prove a point on his return, their dynamic is set to be one of the season's major talking points
The stalwart tin-top boss still shaping careers more than 40 years on
Veteran team manager Marvin Humphries and former Tech-Speed team boss has worked not only with stars of the British Touring Car Championship, but legends including Gil de Ferran, Hans Stuck and Tom Sneva in a long and varied career that has spanned five decades across tin-tops, single-seaters and sportscars
The grassroots rise that shaped an understated BTCC star
Having started out in club-level competitions alongside his own university engineering studies, Josh Cook's journey to becoming an established frontrunner in the British Touring Car Championship is atypical. But it's these experiences that have moulded the 30-year-old into a humble star, respected throughout the paddock
Ranking the top 10 BTCC drivers of 2021
A refresh in equipment and some returning faces helped contribute to a supremely competitive 2021 British Touring Car Championship campaign. Ash Sutton was crowned a three-time champion, successfully defending his 2020 title, but faced stiff competition in the final year before the switch to hybrid. Autosport picks out the best performers
Why the BTCC's ballast increase couldn't stop champion Sutton
Ballast will be gone from the BTCC next year as hybrid power enters the scene, but for its final season the maximum was increased from 60kg to 75kg. Despite having to carry that nearly all season, Ash Sutton was always the favourite to pocket a third title - the 27-year-old getting his reward for a season of speed tempered by savvy to nail his opportunities
The much-loved tin-top superstar bowing out at 59
OPINION: It's not often that a driver achieves widespread affection for their personality, as well as their on-track performances. One such individual is Gabriele Tarquini, who will soon bring the curtain down on a remarkable career that has yielded touring car titles on the European and global stage - and, famously, in Britain too
The making of the BTCC's newest superstar
Ash Sutton is on the verge of being crowned a three-time British Touring Car Champion; he seems to have it all. But life hasn't always been straightforward for this superstar of touring cars, as Marcus Simmons has been finding out