Jeff Gordon, the Vallejo native who drove his first laps at age 5 and who has gone on to become one of the most successful NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers, said Thursday that 2015 will be his last full season in the sport.

Gordon also said the 2015 season-opening Daytona 500, which is scheduled to be run Feb. 22 in Daytona Beach, Fla., may be his last.

Unlike many contemporary drivers, Gordon has kept the same number, 24, and has driven for the same owner, Rick Hendrick, for his entire Cup-level career. This will be their 23rd year together.

Gordon has grown from being one of the new kids at the top of stock car racing, winning the 1991 Rookie of the Year Award. He’s now considered one of the respected veterans at 43, with four championships to his credit. He’s also third in the list of Cup wins with 92, behind “The King” Richard Petty and “The Silver Fox,” David Pearson.

In pre-season interviews in 2014, Gordon quickly and emphatically brushed off retirement talk. Then he launched into one of his most successful years.

But he also has struggled with back pain that can be aggravated by long hours behind the wheel, as well as those inevitable crashes.

“This is certainly something that I’ve been thinking about for years,” Gordon said in a news conference Thursday. “But I just love driving race cars. Ever since I was a kid, that’s what I wanted to do was to be a race car driver.”

He called his career “a kid’s dream come true in real life in front of thousands, if not millions, of people.”

The back pain was a factor, but not the only one in his decision, Gordon said. “It was a combination of things.”

Oddly enough, his 2014 successes were factors, too. “Even the great stretch and the run that we had and how good we were last year confirmed things even more for me,” he said. “I was like, ‘You know what? This is all I could ask for is to be at this point in my career, 20-plus years into my career, and be that competitive week in and week out.”

He was ready to end on that high note. “But I wanted to give one more year to my team, to Rick, to the sponsors, to the fans, my family and myself,” he said.

Gordon said he’s had multiple discussions with Hendrick as he tried to figure out the right time to step away. “I always said I wanted to step away on my own terms if possible, and I want to be competitive out there, and I hoped that I could do that all the way through my final year.”

Though Hendrick kept trying to convince Gordon to stay in the No. 24, Gordon said he came to his decision midway through last season.

“This is it, Boss,” he recalled telling Hendrick. “We agreed and the timing was good for me, good for Hendrick, and other opportunities that are out in front of us.”

But Gordon left himself some wiggle room.

“Retirement means you go off to a beach somewhere and sit in a rocking chair on the front porch and drink your coffee and pet your dog. That’s not me.”

Instead, he said, “I’m actually going to have to get a real job now.” But he also is leaving himself open to getting in a race car, whether it’s at NASCAR’s Cup or one of its lower-level series, or a prototype for a different motorsports category. “I maybe want to do the Baja 1000,” he said.

He said he had no thoughts as to who would fill the void he will leave. “I don’t know if I’ve ever really looked at myself in that way,” he said, explaining that he focused on being the best driver for his team rather than as a leader in the garage or for the sport.

Besides, he said, “There are a lot of talented drivers out there that really have the ability to keep the sport growing and transcending.”

NASCAR Chairman Brian France said Gordon “transcends NASCAR and will be celebrated as one of the greatest drivers to ever race. We have all enjoyed watching his legend grow for more than two decades, and will continue to do so during his final full-time season. His prolonged excellence and unmatched class continue to earn him the admiration of fans across the globe.”

Steve Page, president and general manager of Sonoma Raceway, said as promotors, he and others are expected to be neutral observers. “But given his local roots and the tremendous success he’s had at our track, I must admit Jeff Gordon has always been looked upon as the home team around here.

“If he were to win our race in June on his way to his fifth Sprint Cup Series championship, it would likely be a huge cause for celebration among our local race fans. We look forward to helping Jeff celebrate the culmination of a remarkable sports career.”

Hendrick will have to choose a driver to succeed Gordon, and Chase Elliott has been mentioned. But Hendrick said he would focus on Gordon this year and worry about a successor later.

He said it will be unusual to see someone else in that Chevrolet in 2016.

“It’s going to be surely awkward and strange when I walk in the garage area and I don’t see Jeff sitting in the 24 car,” Hendrick said. “But at the same time, I’m looking at it like, man, that’s a year away. So I want to go out and win the championship with him this year and have the kind of season we had last year.”

In 2014, Gordon was consistent, frequently finishing in the top five and rarely out of the top 10. He won at the Kansas, Indianapolis, Michigan and Dover tracks, and started from the pole three times.

He was among the drivers contending in the Chase for the Championship, which NASCAR revised into an elimination contest ultimately won by another Californian, Bakersfield native Kevin Harvick.

“He’s just meant so much to me, the sport, the drivers, young guys owe him so much. He broke a lot of barriers to help people get into the sport, and he’s just been an icon in our sport,” Hendrick said. “So I’m anxious to see the next chapter after we win the championship this year. Put a little pressure on him!”