The 2006 Daytona 500 was a Nextel Cup (now Sprint Cup) event held at Daytona International Speedway on February 19, 2006. It was the season opener. It was a bittersweet week for Jimmie Johnson. His crew chief, Chad Knaus was suspended for qualifying infractions. Instead, Darian Grubb inherited the crew chief position and Johnson held off Casey Mears on a misty night for victory in NASCAR's biggest race. Stats