Gordon’s 2005 win drew a record 18.7 million viewers ... “He changed the commercial side of the sport more than anything,” three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin said.

In 1988, he became the oldest Daytona 500 winner on record at age 50 ... before claiming his second win in 1999 and his final win there in 2005. He also claimed pole position two separate times ...

NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon won the Daytona 500 twice in his first seven seasons, later adding another victory six years later, in 2005. Surely, he figured, there would be more to come.