Denny Hamlin won the Pocono 500, scoring his first NASCAR NEXTEL Cup victory in his 21st career start. This was Hamlins first race at Pocono.
Hamlin became the first rookie to win a NASCAR NEXTEL Cup race since Kyle Busch won at Phoenix in November 2005.
Hamlin became the ninth different race winner in 2006. He scored his sixth top-10 finish in 14 races this season. Hamlin has posted five straight top-15 finishes.
Hamlin is the 30th first-time race winner since 1994. There has been at least one first-time race winner in 12 of the last 13 years (since 1994). There was no first-time race winner in 2004.
This is the third time in 2006 that a race was won from the Bud Pole starting position. Kasey Kahne won two races from the Bud Pole (Texas and Atlanta).
This marked the 10th race at Pocono to be won from the Bud Pole.
Hamlin led the most laps for the first time in his career.
Race winner Hamlin led six times for 83 laps, including the final 24 laps.
This was team owner Joe Gibbs 49th NASCAR NEXTEL Cup victory. Gibbs has scored his fifth NASCAR NEXTEL Cup victories at Pocono Raceway.
Joe Gibbs Racing has won at least one race each season 1993-2006, 14 consecutive years.
Notebook Items
This is the 182nd victory [I have 181 on my Wins by Number Chart] by a #11 car in NASCAR history. The last time the #11 won was with Bill Elliott in the Junior Johnson-owned Ford in September 1994 at Darlington.
Kurt Busch (second) scored his third top-10 and second top-five finish in 2006. It is his fifth top-five finish in 11 races at Pocono Raceway.
Tony Stewart (third) scored his eighth top-10 finish in 14 races in 2006. It is his first top-10 finish in the last four races. Stewart climbed from fifth to fourth in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup point standings. Stewart has scored 10 top-10 finishes in 15 races at Pocono Raceway.
Brian Vickers (fourth) scored his fourth top-10 finish of 2006 and his second top-10 finish in five races at Pocono.
Matt Kenseth (fifth) scored his 10th top-10 finish in 14 races in 2006. It is his ninth top-five finish in 2006. Kenseth has scored six top-10 finishes in 13 races at Pocono Raceway. He remained second in the point standings. One year ago he ranked 24th after 14 races.
Four races ago Greg Biffle was 232 points behind 10th. With his sixth-place finish, Biffle is now 27 points behind 10th and is just two points behind 11th-place Jeff Gordon. He has climbed from 23rd to 12th in points since Talladega. After 14 races in 2005, he ranked second in the point standings. Biffle has scored five straight top-10 finishes, tying the longest top-10 streak of his career set one year ago between August and September.
Jeff Burton (ninth) has climbed from 21st to 7th in the point standings since Martinsville. One year ago he ranked 17th in the standings after 14 races. Burton has scored four straight top-10 finishes, extending a streak that began at Darlington.
Jimmie Johnson (10th) remained first in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup point standings and is now just 48 points ahead of second-place Matt Kenseth. Johnson has lost 61 points of his lead in the last two races. Johnson has scored top-15 finishes in 13 of the 14 races in 2006.
Mark Martin (17th) failed to score a top-15 finish for just the second time in 2006.
At least one Raybestos Rookie-of-the Year contender has scored a top-15 finish in every race this season.
Dave Blaney (27th) extended a 32-race streak of running at the finish – the longest current streak.(NASCAR Statistical Services)(6-11-2006)
