2005 Chevrolet Monte Carlo NASCAR Coupe

• Chassis #2486, aka 08-04-330

• Construction began August 2004

• Nicknamed 'Soldier'

• Raced only in 2005 Gatorade Duel at Daytona (finished 7th) and 2005 Daytona 500

• 2005 Daytona 500 winner

When it came to restrictor plate racing at NASCAR's two Superspeedways in the early 2000's, the team that bore the name of perhaps the greatest plate racer of all time ran the tables. Of the sixteen races at Daytona and Talladega from 2001 through 2004, Dale Earnhardt Incorporated won eleven of them. In that four-year stretch, they had nearly accomplished what had taken the plate-powerhouse teams of Richard Childress Racing and Hendrick Motorsports two decades to achieve. In the five Daytona 500's since Hendrick's triumph in 1999, DEI had been the victors three times. Interrupting Dale Earnhardt, Jr.'s 2004 restrictor plate dominance by winning at Talladega in the spring and Daytona in July, Jeff Gordon had grabbed the coat tails of the DEI freight train. But the Hendrick organization wanted more, and six months before the 2005 Daytona 500 they began construction on chassis 08-04-330 – designating commission on August 4th and being the 330th chassis built in-house by Hendrick Motorsports. The car is also known as #2486 – the 86th #24 Chevrolet built for Jeff Gordon. As with most of Gordon's cars, it was then given a nickname: 'Soldier.' The name would prove quite necessary, as it was going to be quite a battle to return to the top of the sport's biggest mountain. After a near-miss for both Jeff Gordon and teammate Jimmie Johnson in the inaugural Chase for the Cup, Hendrick Motorsports was ready to take it to the world after their grievous autumn of 2004. Jeff Gordon rolled into Daytona with this brand-new car in search of a third win in 'The Great American Race' – an accomplishment he would achieve in tenaciously hard-fought manner over fierce competition from defending DAYTONA 500 winner Dale Earnhardt, Jr., defending series champion Kurt Busch, and eventual 2005 series champion Tony Stewart. In victory lane, Jeff dedicated the win to the families of all those lost in the tragic plane crash the previous fall.

Daytona 500 stats

Sunday, February 20, 2005

Margin of victory: .158 seconds

Attendance: 200,000

Lead changes: 22

#24 start: P15

#24 led: 29 of 203 laps

Winner's purse: $1,497,150