2006 Coca-Cola 600
The 2006 Coca-Cola 600 was the 12th stock car race of the 2006 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series as well as the 47th running of the event. It was held on May 28, 2006, in Concord, North Carolina, at Lowe's Motor Speedway, before a crowd of 175,000 spectators. The circuit is an intermediate track that holds NASCAR races. Kasey Kahne of the Evernham Motorsports team won the 400-lap race starting from ninth position; Hendrick Motorsports driver Jimmie Johnson finished second and Roush Racing's Carl Edwards was third.
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 12 of 36 in the 2006 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series | |||
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2006 Coca-Cola 600 program cover, with artwork by NASCAR artist Sam Bass. The painting is called "Coca-Cola 12 Pack!" | |||
| Date | May 28, 2006 | ||
| Official name | Coca-Cola 600 | ||
| Location | Charlotte Motor Speedway, Concord, North Carolina | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 1.5 mi (2.414 km) | ||
| Distance | 400 laps, 600 mi (965.606 km) | ||
| Weather | Chilly with temperatures reaching as low as 60.8 °F (16.0 °C); wind speeds up to 15 miles per hour (24 km/h) | ||
| Average speed | 128.84 miles per hour (207.35 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver |
| Evernham Motorsports | |
| Time | 28.744 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Kasey Kahne | Evernham Motorsports | |
| Laps | 158 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 9 | Kasey Kahne | Evernham Motorsports | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | Fox Broadcasting Company | ||
| Announcers | Mike Joy, Darrell Waltrip, Larry McReynolds | ||
| Nielsen Ratings |
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| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | Performance Racing Network | ||
| Booth Announcers | Mark Garrow, Doug Rice | ||
| Turn Announcers | Pat Patterson, Brent MacMillan, Chuck Carland | ||
Scott Riggs won the second pole position of his career by posting the fastest lap in qualifying, and led 47 of the first 49 laps until Jeff Gordon overtook him on lap 50. The lead changed a total of 37 times, with Kahne leading the most laps of any competitor (158). At the final restart on the 368th lap, Edwards led the field and held off Johnson in the second position. Kahne turned left to pass them both and reclaim the lead three laps later. He extended his advantage to more than two seconds and claimed his third victory of the season and the fourth of his career. There were a total of fifteen cautions during the race, and sixteen different drivers each led at least one lap.
The result of the race advanced Kahne to sixth in the Drivers' Championship, 292 points behind Johnson. Roush Racing teammates Matt Kenseth and Mark Martin each finished in the top ten, and moved to second and third, respectively. Tony Stewart of Joe Gibbs Racing fell from second to fourth after crashing heavily on lap 34. In the Manufacturers' Championship, Chevrolet maintained its lead with 86 points, 14 points ahead of Ford in second, and 16 in front of Dodge (its first Coca-Cola 600 victory since 1977) in third, with 24 races left in the season.