Jimmie Johnson came from ninth to win the 500-lap Chase race at Martinsville, as Jeff Burton's retirement opened the points lead to Matt Kenseth.
The 2006 Subway 500 took place at Martinsville on 22 October 2006 and was won by Jimmie Johnson from ninth on the grid. It came six events into the ten-race Chase, and its result reshuffled the points after Jeff Burton's retirement.
The 2006 Subway 500 was the 32nd race of that year's Nextel Cup season and the sixth event in the ten-race Chase for the title. Jimmie Johnson of Hendrick Motorsports won the 500-lap race from ninth on the grid, with Denny Hamlin of Joe Gibbs Racing second and Bobby Labonte of Petty Enterprises third. The race was held on 22 October 2006 at Martinsville Speedway in Ridgeway, Virginia, before a crowd of 65,000.
What was the 2006 Subway 500?
The Subway 500 was one of 36 scheduled stock car races in the 2006 season, and it was the sixth of the ten Chase events that decided the title. The race covered 500 laps, or 263 miles (423 km), on the standard Martinsville track, a paperclip-shaped oval of 0.526 miles (0.847 km). Its four turns are banked at eleven degrees, while the front and back stretches are not banked at all.
Johnson's win was his fifth of the 2006 season and the 23rd of his career. He collected a prize of $191,886 for the victory, and the result pushed him up the championship table.
A one-lap side-by-side battle on the final restart decided the 2006 Subway 500, and the result rearranged the Chase table.
Where did the championship stand before the race?
Jeff Burton led the Drivers' Championship with 5,763 points before the race. Matt Kenseth was second on 5,718 points, and Kevin Harvick was third with 5,674. Mark Martin and Dale Earnhardt Jr. were fourth and fifth, while Denny Hamlin, Jimmie Johnson, Kasey Kahne, Kyle Busch and Jeff Gordon filled out the top ten of the Chase.
In the Manufacturers' Championship, Chevrolet led with 237 points. Dodge was second on 179 and Ford third on 173. Gordon was the defending race winner, but he had slipped from seventh to tenth in the standings after the previous race at Charlotte, and he said he would try to win races to get back into contention.
Burton called the Subway 500 another volatile race in the Chase, and he thought it would significantly affect the contenders. Kenseth felt it would be the toughest test of the season for his team, while Earnhardt said his team was in good shape after a solid finish at Charlotte.
What did the entry list look like?
NASCAR held its last test days for Nextel Cup entrants from 16 to 18 October at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Reed Sorenson was quickest in the first session, and Casey Mears posted the highest speed in the evening session at 173.077 miles per hour. Kyle Busch was fastest in the third session at 175.382 miles per hour (282.250 km/h), while Gordon was fastest of the three days in the fourth session.
Fifty cars from 29 teams were entered for the race, and they represented three manufacturers. Morgan-McClure driver Todd Bodine chose to concentrate on the Truck Series championship, so Ward Burton, the 2002 Daytona 500 champion, took his place. Roush Racing also announced that David Ragan would drive the No. 06 car in four of the remaining five races, starting at Martinsville.
How did practice and qualifying set the grid?
Three practice sessions were held before the race, lasting 90, 60 and 45 minutes. Gordon was fastest in the first session with a time of 19.478 seconds, ahead of Ryan Newman and Hamlin. Martin crashed during practice and had to switch to a back-up car.
In qualifying Kurt Busch won the pole, his sixth of the season and ninth overall, and his first at Martinsville, at 19.408 seconds. Gordon was only 0.038 seconds slower and took the other front-row spot.
Hamlin started third, Newman fourth and Stewart fifth. Blaney took sixth, and Earnhardt and Green were seventh and eighth. Johnson, who was in the Chase, qualified ninth, and Ken Schrader rounded out the top ten. Harvick, also in the Chase, was twelfth.
Seven drivers failed to qualify, among them Mike Bliss, Hermie Sadler, Chad Chaffin, Morgan Shepherd and Derrike Cope. Kurt Busch said afterwards that the team had always qualified well at Martinsville, a track he described as one that drivers either love or hate.
How did the opening laps unfold?
Before the start, Eldrid Davis of Raceway Ministries gave the invocation, and the Martinsville High School marching band played the anthem. The race started at 1:00 p.m. after NBC's live broadcast began at 12:32 p.m. The air temperature was around 48 degrees Fahrenheit (9 degrees Celsius), and the day was overcast after some earlier rain. Gordon got the better launch from the line and led Kurt Busch by the second turn.
The first caution came three laps later, when Kyle Petty spun in turn four. Martin Truex Jr. made contact with the rear of the slowing Sorenson car during that same caution, and Jeff Burton suffered front-end damage when he hit the rear of Joe Nemechek's car. Gordon kept the lead on the lap 11 restart, and Hamlin passed Kurt Busch for second in the following laps.
Earnhardt passed Kurt Busch for fourth on lap 44, and on lap 45 he reported that one of his engine cylinders was misfiring. By lap 60 Gordon had a 2.4 second lead over Hamlin, and Earnhardt had moved into second on lap 58.
On lap 65 Mears and Newman collided in turn two, which brought out the second caution. The leaders made their stops for fuel and tires during that period, and Newman was sent to the rear of the longest line for his role in the incident.
How did the middle of the race unfold?
Gordon led the field to the green on the lap 73 restart. By lap 80 he was more than a second clear of Earnhardt, and Stewart moved to third by lap 83. Johnson took third from Stewart shortly afterwards and then climbed toward the front.
On lap 106 Burton made contact with Gordon during a three-lap battle, and both drivers kept racing. Johnson passed Earnhardt for second 24 laps later, and on lap 145 he passed Gordon for the lead.
Gordon reclaimed the lead one lap later and built a quarter-second advantage by lap 150. Johnson moved back into the lead on lap 153, and after a caution he led the lap 162 restart ahead of Gordon and Stewart.
Burton's race was hard. A carburetor problem on lap 218 made him slower than his rivals, and he drove to the garage. On lap 244 it was announced that he had retired, which left Kenseth with a clear route to the points lead.
What happened in the closing stages?
On the lap 249 restart Gordon was out front, with Hamlin, Elliott Sadler, Kurt Busch and Nemechek following. Hamlin took the lead from Gordon on lap 256, and Gordon moved back up to fifth by lap 318 as the leaders fought through several cautions.
Schrader and Ragan made contact into turn one on lap 333, which brought out the ninth caution. Schrader hit the outside wall and retired, and Ragan and Jarrett continued. Johnson led the lap 362 restart ahead of Earnhardt and Hamlin, and Hamlin passed Earnhardt for second on lap 381.
Kenseth, who was running well, said the title was still wide open and that the last race would be exciting. The pit stops and cautions kept shuffling the order. On lap 400 Labonte made contact with McMurray in turn two, which brought out the thirteenth caution. Labonte led the lap 407 restart with Mears and Gordon behind him, and Johnson moved into second by lap 438.
Kyle Busch collided with the outside wall on lap 448 after Ragan spun in turn four, and the fourteenth caution waved. On the next caution Mears spun after Gilliland caused contact, and Bowyer's spin on lap 469 brought out the sixteenth.
How did the final restart decide the race?
Johnson led the restart on lap 495 with Hamlin close behind. Hamlin bumped him coming out of turn two, which pushed Johnson wide, then drew alongside him down the backstretch. They ran side by side for one lap, before Johnson pulled ahead at turn four.
Johnson then held the lead for the final six laps to take the win. Hamlin had passed Labonte for second earlier, on lap 485, so he held that position at the flag.
The race finished in 3 hours and 44 minutes, and the winning margin was 0.544 seconds. It was a tight finish for a race that had seen 18 cautions and 16 lead changes among five drivers.
What were the finishing positions?
Johnson led the most laps of any driver, 245 in total, and he completed the win from ninth on the grid. The top ten finishers are listed in the table below, with Johnson's win from ninth as the defining result.
| Finish | Driver | Note |
|---|---|---|
| First | Jimmie Johnson | Started ninth; fifth win of 2006 |
| Second | Denny Hamlin | Passed Labonte for second on lap 485 |
| Third | Bobby Labonte | Third; said he felt he had stolen something |
| Fourth | Tony Stewart | Fourth |
| Fifth | Jeff Gordon | Fifth after leading much of the race |
| Sixth | Casey Mears | Sixth |
| Seventh | Kasey Kahne | Seventh |
| Eighth | Jeff Green | Eighth |
| Ninth | Kevin Harvick | Ninth |
| Tenth | Petty | Tenth |
What did the drivers say after the race?
Johnson was pleased with the result. He said the team had been running near the front in several recent races and had finally closed the deal at Martinsville.
Hamlin admitted that he had made contact with Johnson on purpose, because it was his only real chance to get past. Labonte said about his third-place finish that he felt he had stolen something.
Earnhardt admitted he was to blame for the collision with Kahne on lap 476, when his rear brakes locked and sent him spinning. Ragan denied intentionally wrecking Schrader, saying he had over-driven the first corner. Stewart, who had seen Ragan's earlier spin that sent Kyle Busch into the wall, believed NASCAR should have disqualified Ragan from the race. NASCAR also fined crew chief Tommy Baldwin Jr. $5,000 for rule violations.
What did the result do to the championship?
The win moved Johnson up to third in the Drivers' Championship, 41 points behind Kenseth. Kenseth took the lead with 5,848 points, ahead of Harvick with 5,812, and Johnson sat on 5,807, six points ahead of Hamlin.
Burton fell to fifth after retiring. He was philosophical about it, saying that these things happen and that the Chase was not over for his team. In the Manufacturers' Championship Chevrolet kept its lead, 53 points ahead of Dodge and 61 ahead of Ford, with four races remaining.
Why did the race matter for the title?
The Subway 500 showed how quickly the Chase could change. A single retirement, a lead change on the final restart and a late pit stop cycle were enough to rearrange the top of the table.
For Johnson, the win was a rebuild of his title hopes. For Kenseth, the points lead was a clear sign that the championship would go to the final race at Homestead.