Biffle, who missed the chase this year, defended his championship for the third time. The race was also the swan song (for at least the next eight years) for NBC's telecasts. Kasey Kahne won the pole for this race, while Jimmie Johnson took ninth place, enough to clinch his first Nextel Championship, and the first for Jeff Gordon as a car owner, winning four titles under the Winston Cup banner as a driver for Rick Hendrick. Finishing order among Chase drivers Denny Hamlin (3) Kasey Kahne (4) Kevin Harvick (5) Matt Kenseth (6) Jimmie Johnson (9) ‡ Jeff Burton (14) Mark Martin (18) Dale Earnhardt Jr. (19) Jeff Gordon (24) Kyle Busch (38) Final standings Jimmie Johnson 6,475 pts (‡ — 2006 Nextel Cup Series Champion) Matt Kenseth -56 pts (unchanged) Denny Hamlin -68 pts (+1) (Rookie of the Year) Kevin Harvick -78 pts (-1) Dale Earnhardt Jr. -147 pts (unchanged) Jeff Gordon -219 pts (unchanged) Jeff Burton -247 pts (unchanged) Kasey Kahne -29 pts (+1) Mark Martin -307 pts (-1) Kyle Busch - 448 pts (unchanged) Trivia Denny Hamlin became the first rookie to make the Chase for the Cup. Tony Stewart did not make the Chase for the Cup this year. This marked the first time since the chase format was implemented in 2004 that the defending champion did not clinch a spot. However, he won three of the Chase races en route to a $1 million (US) bonus as the best finisher not among the drivers participating in the Chase. In both years, the winner of the regular season did not make the next year's Chase. Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth, and Mark Martin returned for their third consecutive chase, while Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr. entered their second chase and Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick, Kasey Kahne, Kyle Busch, and Jeff Burton all qualified for their first chase. Jeremy Mayfield, Ryan Newman, Kurt Busch and Tony Stewart made the first two chases but failed to make this year's playoff, with Mayfield without a team after being released by Evernham Motorsports in August. The top three finishers of the 2005 Chase did not qualify for the 2006 chase. (#1 Tony Stewart, #2 Greg Biffle, and #3 Carl Edwards) References Chase for the Nextel Cup