2006 Daytona 500

2006 Daytona 500

Race details[1][2]
Race 1 of 36 in the 2006 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series
2006 Daytona 500 logo
Date	February 19, 2006 (2006-02-19)
Location	Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach, Florida
Course	Permanent racing facility 2.5 mi (4.0 km)
Distance	203 laps, 507.5 mi (816.742 km)
Scheduled Distance	200 laps, 500 mi (804.672 km)
Weather	Temperatures up to 71.6 °F (22.0 °C); wind speeds up to 14 miles per hour (23 km/h)[3]
Average speed	142.734 miles per hour (229.708 km/h)
Pole position
Driver	Jeff Burton	Richard Childress Racing
Time	47.581
Qualifying race winners
Duel 1 Winner	Elliott Sadler	Robert Yates Racing
Duel 2 Winner	Jeff Gordon	Hendrick Motorsports
Most laps led
Driver	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	Dale Earnhardt, Inc.
Laps	32
Winner
No. 48	Jimmie Johnson	Hendrick Motorsports
Television in the United States
Network	NBC
Announcers	Bill Weber, Benny Parsons, Wally Dallenbach Jr.
Nielsen Ratings	11.3/23 (Final) (20 million viewers)[4]

The 2006 Daytona 500 was the first stock car race of the 2006 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series. The 48th Daytona 500 was held on February 19, 2006, at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, before 200,000 spectators. Hendrick Motorsports' Jimmie Johnson, won the 203-lap race after starting ninth. Chip Ganassi Racing's Casey Mears and Penske Racing South's Ryan Newman finished second and third, respectively.

Jeff Burton claimed his third career pole position with the quickest qualifying lap, and led the first 18 laps until the first round of pit stops. Tony Stewart led the next 20 laps from the 28th lap. Matt Kenseth led from laps 58 to 80 until Dale Earnhardt Jr. took it on the 86th. Earnhardt led seven times for a total of 32 laps, more than any other driver. Before the last round of pit stops, Johnson took the lead from teammate Brian Vickers on lap 187. After Greg Biffle lost control of his car on the final lap, he led Newman and Mears to win under caution. During the race, there were 11 cautions and a race-record 32 lead changes by 18 different drivers.

Johnson won his first Daytona 500, his first at either Talladega Superspeedway or Daytona International Speedway, and the 19th of his career. The victory occurred after Johnson's crew chief Chad Knaus was suspended for illegal car modifications, for which he was fined $25,000 and suspended until March 22. Johnson won the first of five races of the 2006 season, en route to his first of seven NASCAR Cup Series championships at the season's finish.

Johnson led the Drivers' Championship with 190 points after the season's first race, followed by Mears and Newman with 170 points each. Elliott Sadler and Stewart were fourth and fifth with 165 and 160 points, respectively. Chevrolet led the Manufacturers' Championship with nine points, followed by Dodge with six points and Ford with four points. The race attracted 20 million television viewers, the most watched NASCAR race in terms of average viewership.