The year before that,
his sophomore year, Johnson finished second in the title picture to Matt Kenseth in the final year of the "old" points format,
without the Chase for the Cup playoff.
So the third time's a
charm, right? For Mr. Johnson, it was wrong. In 2005, the El Cajon, CA. native scored four wins, two of them in the Chase. Going into
the season finale at Homestead, Johnson found himself 52 points behind the leader points leader and eventual champion Tony
Stewart, but a cut tire resulting in a crash relegated him to a 40th place finish, and dropped him to 5th in the standings.
Going into this season,
many picked Johnson to make the Chase, and a lot of people picked him to win it all. At the Daytona 500 in February many doubted
Johnson because he was without crew chief Chad Knaus, who was serving a suspension for making unapproved adjustments prior
to the sport's biggest race.
Not to worry, interim
crew chief Darian Grubb led the charge as Johnson won his first ever restrictor plate race in the Great American Race.
Two races later at Las
Vegas, still with Grubb atop the pit box, Johnson passed Matt Kenseth off turn 4 on the last lap to
score his second win of '06. Another plate race win at Talladega with another
last lap pass, this one on his teammate Brian Vickers to get the checkered flag, with Knaus back atop the box.
Consistency kept Johnson
in the points lead through most of the summer. Then in August he overcame a cut tire early in the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard
to win the sport's second biggest race. Following that victory, Johnson cruised into the Chase with the points lead, but not
for long.
In the first Chase race
at New Hampshire, a mechanical problem put Johnson in the back of the pack,
and prone to getting involved in a wreck. Sure enough, it happened in the middle of the race, as his No. 48 Lowe's Chevy slammed
the turn 2 wall. A 39th place finish dropped the Hendrick Motorsports driver to 9th in the standings, 139 markers behind the
leader. A 13th place finish the following week gained Johnson a spot in the standings, and a whole three points on the leader.
2006 StockCar Review.
