BEHIND THE HAULER CHAT WITH JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE'S MONTE CARLO SS:

WHY ARE YOU SO GOOD AT POCONO? "I like the fact that the corners are different and challenging. I think with my background and all the different things that I've raced, it maybe helps with that. We attack each turn a little differently. We've got to compromise the setup in general around the whole track. You can't just focus on one focus of the turn. You have to deal with some issues in other turns. I think that really plays into it."

WHAT'S THE TOUGHEST CORNER AT POCONO? "I'd say the one that produces the best lap and makes you competitive would be turn three but going through turn one can be hair raising at times but I definitely think turn two is a more intense turn for all the drivers, the tunnel turn. You carry a lot of speed in. You don't really spend a lot of time out of the gas or using much brake. You're back from the gas early and the car isn't comfortable at all. With that kink back there it's pretty much on edge all the way through."

YOU GUYS AREN'T SHIFTING AT ALL HERE ANYMORE. IS THAT A GOOD THING? "From a drivers standpoint, I think it's a little less challenging around the race track. I feel that we maybe put on a little bit better show when were shifting. You could race and had the gear up to get you up off the turn and put on a little better show. From my standpoint inside the car, I think we're missing a little something here since we're not shifting."

YOU AND JEFF GORDON RUN WELL. NOW KYLE BUSCH IS RUNNING WELL. DO YOU THINK BRIAN VICKERS PUT A LOT OF PRESSURE ON HIMSELF TO MATCH UP WITH YOU GUYS? "He definitely is a very strong critic of himself. He tries to get everything that he can out of the race car and the team. I'm not really sure if he's been too hard on himself or not. I know that he takes his job very seriously. He's been doing a lot of personal searching to come up with the decision that he has made and to work out the things he has. He's going through a lot right now and I can only wish him the best."

NOW THAT YOU'RE AT ABOUT THE SECOND HALF OF THE REGULAR SEASON, WHEN DO YOU START THINKING ABOUT POINTS AND POSITIONING? "I'm thinking points all along. One, to make sure you get in the Chase. Two, I think the top two or three drivers, it's their responsibility to keep this a 10-person race to get in the Chase. We need to keep control of that 400 mark and not let there be 12, 14, 15 cars in the championship battle."

WHAT'S THE KEY TO YOUR SUCCESS IN LONG DISTANCE RACES? "I can't go without saying I've had great equipment and great people working behind me so I put a lot of weight in that. I think the longer the event the more challenging the event, the slicker the race track, all the different things that really make it tough on the driver inside the car fit my style and I just seem to do a better job with it."

DO YOU LIKE THIS TRACK? "I do. It was a lot more fun when we were shifting. Now I just run around in high gear. The engine is pretty lazy up off the corner but it still is a fun track. It's definitely challenging having three different corners."

DOES THE NO SHIFTING MAKE IT THAT MUCH TOUGHER? "No, I think not shifting made it a little easier for us."

DID IT MAKE YOU CHANGE YOUR STRATEGY AT ALL? "I don't think it did. I'm trying to think back to last year. I don't recall anything changing because of that."

ON BRIAN VICKERS BEING A GOOD FRIEND: "He certainly is a good friend. Obviously a lot has gone on this week at HMS (Hendrick Motorsports). I know that they're going to be working hard to find somebody to come in there and get in the 25 and do a great job. I'm not sure where that will end up. It's been a tough, busy week at HMS. I think as we get into next week, we'll really start looking at all drivers, who's available, who is in contract years and make some decisions based on that."

DO YOU THINK CASEY MEARS IS TALENTED ENOUGH DRIVER FOR HMS? "Yeah, I definitely think so. In the free agent market I think he is one of the few guys that doesn't have anything signed up for next year. He's by far the best one out there. Then on top of that, if there are some other drivers in contract years that all has to be decided."

HOW DO YOU THINK CASEY MEARS AND KYLE BUSCH WOULD GET ALONG IF THEY WERE TEAMMATES? "Rick Hendrick has a great way of helping everybody get along. If we are in that situation, I wouldn't see it as being an issue."

DO THE DRIVERS AT HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS HAVE ANY INPUT ON THOSE KIND OF DECISIONS? "Maybe Jeff (Gordon) does. From my standpoint, I don't see my role as that or my responsibility being inside the 48 car. Jeff with his ownership situation probably has a little bit more involvement."

HOW IMPORTANT IS TRACK POSITION HERE? "Track position is big here. Pit stall isn't the biggest situation. The pit stalls are nice and big with lots of room here but track position is very important."

AS THE SEASON CONTINUES, DO YOU SEE MORE GUYS TAKING CHANCES TO MAKE IT INTO THE TOP 10? "Yeah, that's the goal that everybody is shooting for. You've got Greg Biffle and (Jamie) McMurray, some very good cars. I know there are some others I'm forgetting but you've got some very strong teams right there on the fringe from the outside looking in on the top 10. If you take chances and don't finish, you're not going to collect points and it's not going to do you any good. You're going to see a lot of hard racing."

DO YOU THINK THIS IS YOUR YEAR TO WIN THE CHAMPIONSHIP? "I think so. We'll just have to see. It's our fifth season and we've been right there in the hunt. I definitely feel like we're one of the favorites but we've learned lessons over the last five years and make the right adjustments. We'll hope for 10 good ones and see what happens."

WHAT ONE OF THE BIGGEST LESSONS YOU HAVE LEARNED? "There's just a ton of them. I think in general one thing that is going to help us this year over the other years is that we're still refining the new body on the Chevy Monte Carlo. We're still working out the setups of the car where in the past we started the season with the finished product. As the year wore on a lot of people caught up and surpassed us and we were trying to play catch up. Even though we've won a few races this year I think we still have a lot of improvement in our cars and that's what I'm excited for the most."

THESE NEXT TWO RACES, IS IT KIND OF A RELIEF TO OPEN IT UP ON BIGGER TRACKS? "No, from our standpoint the intensity is still the same at the short track or superspeedways. There's still a lot of points out there and every point counts at this stage. It's really not a vacation for us."

DO YOU LIKE TO RUN MORE FLAT OUT HERE RATHER THAN WHAT YOU HAD IN CHARLOTTE OR DOVER? "I love them all. I really do. The only one I didn't like was Rockingham and that isn't on the schedule. When I look ahead I have a smile on my face for all the tracks."

HOW MUCH DOES IT HELP YOU TO RETURN TO A TRACK WHERE YOU'VE HAD SUCCESS AND TO HAVE THAT CONFIDENCE FOR PRACTICE AND QUALIFYING? "It really helps. I think in '03 we won both races. I came back last year and didn't have the success that we wanted or thought that we would have. Now coming back this time I don't know what to think. I had one good one, one off year and I'm just looking forward to getting on the track. But it is nice in the back of your mind knowing that you know the line around the race track. You know how to attack. I know what is important. You just need to package it all together."

WHAT SURPRISES YOU ABOUT YOUR SUCCESS AT PLATE RACES? "Just the way the race unfolds at the end. I've spent so much time in the past racing at the wrong time. This year I just really waited as long as I could. It's challenging for a driver to wait that long but it's really paid off. It's been a big shock."

MICHIGAN IS A FAVORITE TRACK OF MOST DRIVERS. WHY DOES EVERYONE LIKE THAT TRACK? "There's so much room to race. If you car is not handling great you can't move around. But more than anything if you've got a good car and you can get some track position, you can get outside and start passing people."

ON POCONO BEING A LONG RACE: "Yeah, it's a long day. Inside the car goes by a lot faster but I know from the crew watching, my wife sitting on the pit box, my friends watching, it's a long day."

DID YOU EVER WATCH THIS RACE ON TV BEFORE YOU STARTED RACING IN THIS SERIES? "I can't say I have."

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE INCREASING TREND OF DRIVERS ASKING TO GET OUT OF THEIR CONTRACT? "From the owners standpoint, they want to lock down their driver for as long as they can to have that security so they go out to shop a deal and find a sponsor. As we all know things happen in shorter periods of time than what these contracts are. There's a couple of ways you can handle it. One, you can sit down and talk to the owner and try to resolve something and get a release. Or two you can sign a contract right the end of one (season) as the other (season) approaches, which is what we saw last year. It's a small garage area.

"There are only so many owners and so many sponsors so you've got to be very delicate in how you work through those things. But at the end of the day an owner doesn't want a driver in their car that doesn't want to be there. If things aren't working it might be better for everybody to go their own way. You might see some more of that coming up not just what is going on at Hendrick Motorsports right now. As time wears on, as sponsors apply pressure, as drivers and teams get pressure, you're going to see people just try to resolve things and almost move on and say if it's not working, let's change things up and get on down the road."

ON TONY STEWART DRIVING INJURED THIS WEEK. WHAT WILL HE PHYSICALLY HAVE TO DEAL WITH DRIVING THIS WEEKEND? "Luckily we're not shifting so he won't have to worry about the upshifts and the constant battle that went with that. He got some laps at Dover, one of the more physical tracks and slamming your body into the seat, and got out of the car there and felt good and didn't want to get out of the race car. I think he's going to be fine. It's a decision that he's making. We see football players and baseball players playing with broken bones, casts on, whatever it may be. This isn't any different. By no means do I see there being a compromise in safety or putting any driver in any bad situation. There's nothing negative out there to it. You just have a racer that says 'Hey, I'm insured but I don't care. I want to get out there and win a race.'"

WILL TONY STEWART BE ANY LESS COMPETITIVE SINCE HE WILL BE DRIVING INJURED? "No, no. He's mad. He's going to be out there mad and that's going to be bad news for the rest of us."

DO YOU THINK THERE SHOULD BE MORE ROAD RACES? "I think so. I think when we leave Watkins Glen everyone is finally in the swing of things. From my standpoint, I'd love to see a few more on the circuit. I'm all for it. I really enjoy road racing. I think I'd like to even see one in the Chase to mix things up, to have the Chase represent what the season is really about."

ON TONY STEWART BEING MORE CONTENT AND THAT POSSIBLY HELPING TO LEAD HIM TO A TITLE. ARE THERE LESSONS TO BE LEARNED FROM THAT FOR YOU? "I think so. I think if you look at, it's not an exact parallel, but if you look at Tony and the way he stayed focused last year on the right things and didn't let anything rattle his cage, I think there are a lot of lessons in that that I can apply to myself and that my team can apply as well. I feel a little different this year. I feel like things do look like a championship year for us. We've lost it a few times. We've been so close. We understand the pressure. We understand what we need to do to be a champion. Hopefully we'll take that mature standpoint and work through this thing and get it done."

HAVE YOU APPLIED ANY OF THOSE LESSONS THIS YEAR? "Yeah, I think so. If you look at Dover last weekend and everything that we went through. We used to get frustrated and let things explode at that point. Our team isn't known for that but we still did a better job than we've done than any other point in time with any set of circumstances so we're still improving it and doing better in our own eyes and what we see.

"My outlook is more simple as the years wear on and we get into the Chase. It's really all about making the Chase. Then once you're in the Chase, we need 10 good ones. I can have the best 26 races and a 500-point lead and none of it matters. You get to the final 10 and it is what is. You need 10 good ones. The pressure that I put myself through and what I focus on is a lot more relaxed this year than my rookie or sophomore year before we went into the Chase."

WHAT'S SO COOL ABOUT NIGHT RACING? "Everybody has documented the different things. I think what makes them appealing to the fans is that at night the cars looks a little bit faster. It's lit up. You see sparks. The track has more grip in it so you can race harder. I think that's what puts on a better show for the fans."

BEHIND THE HAULER CHAT WITH DALE EARNHARDT JR., NO. 8 BUDWEISER MONTE CARLO SS:

HOW WAS THE CAR IN PRACTICE? "We're pretty happy with it. Spent most of the practice in race trim, but we're satisfied with where we're at."

IN REGARDS TO TONY STEWART COMPETING THIS WEEKEND, POCONO WAS ONE OF THE TRACKS YOU RAN WHEN YOU HAD YOUR BURNS (AFTER A SPORTS-CAR CRASH IN 2004). WHAT IS IT LIKE TO RUN THIS PLACE IN PAIN? "It's not too bad. The straightaways are real long. I had a relief driver in John Andretti, but I got out more because my car was handling so bad. I was like, well, if it's going to drive this bad, I might as well get out (laughing). It didn't bother me that bad. I think if there's a race that Tony can stick it out if he wanted to, this would be one of those tracks. Or it might still be a wise choice for him to get a relief driver. It's up to him."

WHY WOULD THIS BE ONE OF THOSE TRACKS TO STICK IT OUT? "Long straightaways. you can relax. At Dover you're always in the corner, and always on the G forces, and you always have a lot of pressure on that side. He'll have long straightaways here, so he can relax a little bit."

EVEN THOUGH HE'S NOT UP TO 100%, IS TONY ANY LESS COMPETITIVE? "No, he's always competitive. Even at 80%, Tony is still better than half these guys out here."

WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE SHIFTING/NO-SHIFTING HERE AT POCONO? "Take it or leave it. Either way, I don't really care. Everybody's got to do it, so it's not better or worse for anybody."

YOUR TEAM HAS QUIETLY CREEPED UP IN THE POINTS. HOW DOES THAT HAPPEN? "We're just trying to be consistent. When I've got a 10th-place car, I try to finish 10th. We're really just trying to be smooth, be consistent on the times and laps, and I try not to push the car real hard and put myself in bad positions. We've had a little luck on our side, a little convenience on our side, and a couple of other things too, but for the most part the cars drive good. I go out there and get what I can out of them, and it seems to add up pretty good."

DO YOU CONSIDER THE TUNNEL TURN HERE ONE OF THE TOUGHEST TURNS OF ALL THE TRACKS? "No. I think every corner at Sonoma has it beat. Every corner at The Glen's got it beat. It's really not that hard of a corner. It's just real fast. You lift to go through there and get back on the gas real quick. It's not really that hard. I don't know if there is a right way. People say I never go through there right, I always go through there 100 different ways every time I go through it, and I never can seem to repeat myself. I don't know if that makes it hard. It's not hard, it's tricky."

IS IT POSSIBLE YOU CAN REMAIN UNDER THE RADAR JUST BY DRIVING CONSISTENTLY? "We've wanted to have consistency our entire career. From the start of this season until now, we have been consistent. I'm real glad about that. We've got a win. We've got a lot of 11ths and top-10 finishes. That's what I wanted, so I'm real happy. Things couldn't be better."

ARE YOU HAVING MORE FUN THIS YEAR THAN YOU DID AT THIS TIME LAST YEAR? "I always have fun. I don't really go without fun too long (laughing). It's good the racing side has gotten better. Obviously I enjoy it when we run better and get some wins and stuff like that. I'm having fun this year working with (Tony Eury) Junior, and still be able to have Steve Hmiel too. It's like icing on the cake. Sometimes when you get two guys, there are so many variables. Junior, Steve, the team, all those guys over there, the cars, it's hard to get just one of those things in your life, but to have it all is pretty cool. I'm very happy and very lucky and very fortunate that these guys can stand me enough to work on the car all year and be around me all year. They're just a great group, and I'm real fortunate to have an opportunity to drive for them again."

TWENTY YEARS AGO TIM RICHMOND WON BOTH RACES HERE. DID YOUR DAD TALK ABOUT HIM AT ALL AS A RACE CAR DRIVER? "Daddy thought he was one of the best he'd raced against. I said it before, if Tim had lived and competed for many more years, Daddy wouldn't have seven championships, for sure. That's an obvious statement. He was just amazing to watch. Just a great race car driver. A lot of people said he didn't really have a lot of knowledge about set-ups, but when he had a great car, he got everything out of it. As raw talent goes, he was one of the best."

AFTER THE FRUSTRATIONS LAST YEAR, WHEN DID YOU GET A SENSE THAT THIS YEAR WAS GOING TO BE COMPLETELY DIFFERENT? "Probably in the off-season, we were going around the shop, checking in, talking to the guys, seeing the looks on everybody's faces, seeing how positive the attitudes were around the shop. it's just a good effort. We're all friends, and most of these guys - not all of them but most of them - have worked at DEI for awhile, so we all know each other really well. We just sort of found our place in the sport I believe. We've gotten over the initial bang of coming in, getting involved, and all the hype and expectations. I think as times change, people change, things come and go, and next year might be totally different. But this is probably the best group - as far as having an assembled group - this is the best I've had from top to bottom. The team being really strong and deep in talent, I think this is as good as I've ever had."

HOW IMPORTANT IS IT TO BE MORE CONSISTENT AT TRACKS LIKE THIS WHERE YOU HAVEN'T MAYBE DONE WELL IN THE PAST? "I've run pretty good here in the past. I ran second to Bobby Labonte. I ran third once. I mean, I haven't run that many races here. It's just hit and miss. This place is tough. We just try to get the best finish we can. I try to finish in the top-12 every week. A 12th-place average puts you in a pretty good position when you're trying to make the Chase. That 12th-place average would be great."

WAS IT HIT OR MISS TODAY IN PRACTICE TODAY? "I was real happy with my car, real happy. Car drives easy. The car is better than I am right now. I need to get out there with the rest of the field for about 30 laps and get up to speed. This track is sort of like a road course, it takes awhile to really get acclimated. Every time you come back here, it takes about 15 or 20 laps to sort of get back in the rhythm and know how far you can push it all the time."

WITH SO MANY GOOD TEAMS AND DRIVERS - LIKE PENSKE, GANASSI, HENDRICK, ROUSH, YOU HAVE ONE WIN, STEWART'S GOT ONE WIN SINCE AUGUST - IS IT JUST THAT TOUGH OUT THERE? "There's just a lot of talent and a lot of depth throughout the series as far as competitive teams. A lot of young drivers are coming in with good teams. There are a lot more capable people out there now, that's probably what is."

BEHIND THE HAULER CHAT WITH JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DUPONT MONTE CARLO SS:

Q. Your assessment, Tony Stewart is going to run every lap, or at least he's planning to. How physically demanding is this racetrack?

JEFF GORDON: Probably one of the least physically demanding tracks. Back when we used to shift maybe a little bit more, but we don't shift anymore, and the straightaways are so long you've got a long rest period, it's cool. I think this is definitely one of the better tracks to be able to do that.

Last week was the tough one. I remember when I hit the wall in Texas years ago, and I had to go to Bristol was the next race. That would have been the equivalent of Dover, and I can't imagine ?? Tony did a great job running the laps that he did run there last week.

Q. What is it like as a driver not being 100 percent physically?

JEFF GORDON: Well, you know, once you get in the racecar it's amazing how your mind can block out the pain. But when that caution comes out, it instantly comes back into your mind. I think we need 100 percent focus at all times to be on top of our game, and anything that's a distraction to that is going to cost you speed and performance. You know, I think that some guys it motivates them; they fight through it. Other guys ?? you know, everybody deals with it some way different.

I've only had to deal with it that one time, and once I got out there in the race and was running, I really didn't pay that much attention to it, as long as we were on the green.

Q. Do you think a fresh start might be good for Brian?

JEFF GORDON: Yeah, it may be. It might be good for everybody. You know, I mean, it's tough when frustration sets in and the performance isn't there. You know, it's hard to ever get that confidence back, as a driver, as a team, crew chief, everybody. He's been a great teammate. I've had a lot of fun racing with him and working with him, and I definitely wish him all the best, whatever he does. I'm obviously a big supporter of Hendrick Motorsports, so I'm really anxious and excited to see how we can get that team turned around, as well.

Q. Kyle Busch said that you guys have a new thing where the drivers are kind of meeting after practice, not just the engineers, not just the crew chiefs. Will that help get information flow and kind of feeling to young guys?

JEFF GORDON: Yeah, the suggestion was brought up last week, and Ganassi has kind of done that in the past. You know, I think that we were all kind of in a huddle talking in the garage, and it felt like ?? I think Jimmie Johnson may have brought it up or something about, hey, we ought to maybe think about getting everybody together. It didn't take long. I think by Tuesday or Wednesday we had that meeting all set for basically every weekend now.

Q. What do you think about the potential of Casey Mears as a teammate if that happens?

JEFF GORDON: Well, all I can say is that right now it's wide open at the 25 team as far as who they're talking to. It's anybody and everybody, and Casey is definitely a guy at the top of that list. He's a hot commodity right now, and so ?? I've been a good friend with Casey for a long time, and we've talked in the past about ?? he missed an opportunity to race a Busch Car for Hendrick years ago, and ever since then we've laughed and joked about him being a teammate one day and how much fun it would be. If that works out, it would be great.

Q. Do you miss shifting here?

JEFF GORDON: I do. I think this is a place where you should shift. It does add another perspective to it, and I wish we were doing that.

Q. How did that change the race?

JEFF GORDON: Well, you've just got to get your car better. I think you've got to have your engine package really dialed in, your manifold. We used to be able to change some of those things with gearing, and that's just one of those things that we don't have an option to now. I personally think that it's harder to pass by doing that.

Q. You've always run well here. It's hard to believe you haven't won since '98. Is it luck, is it like an endurance race being that this thing is so long?

JEFF GORDON: You know, this is a place you've got to have your stuff right. It takes power, it takes downforce, and just like what we've been battling with at the mile and a halfs, I think that's where we've kind of gotten behind on this type of track, as well, where other guys have found some ways to get their cars working better than us through the corners. We've had some runs since '98 that were maybe capable ?? performance capable of winning the race, we just didn't have all the other factors to go in there with it. The last few times we've been here, we definitely haven't been one of the top cars, and I look forward to finding those pieces and getting back there.

Q. What do you think of Casey as a driver? I know he thinks highly of you as a friend, as well. What do you think of him as a driver, and how much say do you have at Hendrick Motorsports in a decision like that?

JEFF GORDON: Well, I'd like to think that they're certainly going to get our opinion as drivers. My involvement with Hendrick Motorsports probably might get a little bit more in?depth in those conversations. I think you've got to take your driver hat off ?? it's nice you get to race with guys out there and you get an idea of who's talented and who could do a good job in the right equipment, and I think Casey is one of those guys. He's come a long way in the last couple years, and he's very marketable. He's a good package, and I think that's why people are after him right now.

You know, you never know until you put him into your equipment or equipment equivalent to that, but I look forward to ?? whoever we find, we're going to find somebody that I think is going to do a good job that we're going to be happy with, and from a personal side, sure, it would be great to have Casey because we're good friends. Of guys out there, I'd say other than my teammates, Casey is probably the guy that I'm closest to.

Q. With Tony being less than 100 percent physically this week, how competitive do you expect him to be?

JEFF GORDON: I mean, he's Tony Stewart; I expect him to be very competitive. You know, I don't really think that it's going to ?? this is a long race. Towards the end of the race it might start affecting him, but I think you're going to see him run pretty much just as good as he does any other weekend.

Q. Over the past week there was somebody that emailed and then the emails came pouring in about the chemistry between you and Steve Letarte.

He is a young crew chief, and then some will say he's not ready, and you've said this over and over, but certainly when you look at where you're at in the points standings, it's not bad, really pretty darn good. How is Steve developing? What do you see in him? What's the future? If he's not totally ready, are you grooming him and you're comfortable with him?

JEFF GORDON: I am, and I think he is ready. I think as soon as you start putting numbers up there, then everybody is going to say he's a genius and the greatest young crew chief that's ever come along. You can't pay attention to outside criticism.

Steve is doing a fantastic job; I'm thrilled with his maturity, his ability to really read people and read the situation. He does a great job calling the race. We communicate very well. He's got confidence in me, I've got confidence in him.

But also, a crew chief, and everybody knows, a crew chief these days can't do it all; you've got to surround yourself with all the right resources, and there at Hendrick Motorsports we've got to make sure we apply that correctly, and there's no doubt in my mind that Steve Letarte is capable of doing the job and capable of getting us to victory lane and in the Chase, and if we get in the Chase ?? we've got the strongest team we've had in a long time, it's just that our performance ?? we're missing some things in our setup with the cars, so it's not always showing on the racetrack. But our pit crew is better, our organization is better, our communication is better. I mean, in so many ways we're better than we were three or four years ago.

Q. Sometimes when the fans see your car fall off like last weekend, then they blame the crew chief can't get the car back up and you're complaining about the handling but they don't know the big picture.

JEFF GORDON: Hey, I'm a part of that, too. I take responsibility for any of that just as much as anybody else. I'm feeding him information, and he's making the calls based on that information, and if I disagreed with some adjustments, however he made them, I'd let him know.

We went back through that race this week, and I can tell you that I don't think we would have done much different other than maybe stay out on that last ?? the last time when we came in. But I was so loose on that set of tires that we were just afraid we were only going to go further back. But I think looking back on it, maybe we should have stayed out and gotten track position. I was saying so much about how loose we were, I wanted tires, I was wanting to come in. I was wishing that Steve would talk me out of it, if anything else.

Q. You start the second half of the regular season now. How much now does the jockeying for points position really get going?

JEFF GORDON: Well, you know, I sometimes get caught up in going back through some races and saying, man, if we didn't have this happen or if we could have gotten this position or that position, look where we'd be. You can go back to Bristol, back to Talladega, back to Charlotte a couple weeks ago, and all those things, and you would have Top 5 in points. But you can't do that, and I try to stop myself as soon as I find myself doing that or anybody else on the team, and all you can do is focus on the next race and getting the most points.

I think that right now we all recognize that Biffle is back in the hunt to be in the Top 10, and so we've got to be better than 10th because he's going to be tough, and I think we're capable of doing that.

Q. Is there anything about this track and the first W of the year coming here because you've had success at this track?

JEFF GORDON: Well, we've had success but not the last couple times we've been here. To me this is still an experiment for us. We're still trying to get the right combination together, and what we learn here can help us for Indianapolis and help us for mile and a halfs, as well. It's really about just getting the most out of the aero package of the car and getting comfortable.

We had a really good road course test a couple weeks ago. I'm looking forward to going to Sonoma. Michigan is another track that's coming up that is a good track for us, but we've got to get ?? again, what we learn here, we've got to apply it there, as well.

There's no doubt we can win any weekend once we hit on that balance and that combination that we're searching for.

Q. Can you talk about how you have not won this year, Ryan Newman hasn't won, either; Dale Earnhardt, Jr., has got one win; Ganassi hasn't won. Is it just that tough now? Does every component of your team have to be perfect?

JEFF GORDON: Yeah, and I give Jimmie Johnson a lot of credit because I know what kind of package they have, and I think we're getting beat out there personally by the Evernham cars, the Gibbs cars, even the Childress cars have really come on, and Roush is good, too. I personally think we're behind those guys. All of us, not just us.

So I give Jimmie and Chad a lot of credit for getting as much out of it as they have. I mean, I still there are a couple races we could have won this year but not mile and a halfs, not the tracks that really count.

Q. Physically how tough is this place?

JEFF GORDON: It's not very tough.

Q. You didn't make the front page this week.

JEFF GORDON: No, I didn't. I haven't made the front page in a long time, and I hope it comes soon.

Q. Do you understand why the 25 seems to have that cloud over it of not performing, and some say, well, there are lead dogs in the stable? Why?

JEFF GORDON: There's absolutely no reason why, and we've all scratched our heads. I've had numerous meetings with Rick Hendrick, and we've had so many conversations about why because the effort is there. You know, it just seems like every time they go through the restructuring and changes, the excitement and a new driver comes along and starts doing well, then somewhere along the way it goes away.

I know that the commitment is there to make that team as good as any other team at Hendrick Motorsports, if not one of the top teams out there. I think that's the goal right now. That team, it's got so much potential, but it's just not there yet.

Q. Can a driver who is in that car at an organization the way that is set up like Hendrick perform with marquee guys like you and Jimmie Johnson and then Kyle Busch and then another driver, be it Casey Mears, be it another young guy, is it always because he's down here in the chain that it will be difficult with you icon guys at the lead?

JEFF GORDON: The thing is they have the resources and the information right there at their fingertips. I think that people take for granted how hard it is to put together a solid team and surround yourself with good people. It's people that have confidence in one another.

I think it's easy to have that confidence at the beginning, it's hard to maintain it or continue to make it better. There's more than just a driver change that is going to happen and that needs to happen because obviously Brian Vickers is not ?? nobody is pointing fingers at Brian's performance has not been there because of Brian. I think it's just the whole combination of things.

It's not any one person, and I think everybody is committed ?? all the guys on the 25 team and everybody at Hendrick Motorsports, committed to ?? and us as teammates, as well, are committed to help that team get wherever ?? do whatever they can to get up where they need to be.

Q. A different kind of question. If Joe Nemechek were to knock on your motor coach and ask for a cup of sugar, would you give it to him?

JEFF GORDON: Sure, why not?

Q. Do you consider yourself a good neighbor when you're on the racetrack?

JEFF GORDON: On the racetrack?

Q. You all have your motor coaches lined up. Who are your neighbors, first of all?

JEFF GORDON: This weekend I've got Dale Earnhardt, Jr., and Richard Petty are my neighbors. They haven't come knocking for sugar lately. I think all Junior would want is another phone line in there so he could hook up another computer or something. That's about all he'd want.

Q. Do you consider yourself a good neighbor here?

JEFF GORDON: Yeah, I keep to myself. I definitely don't disrupt the neighborhood. I feel like a pretty giving person, so if somebody needed something, I'd be willing to help them out.

Q. You work in a younger crowd with Brian and Kyle. What kind of advice have you tried to give them over the years?

JEFF GORDON: Advice?

Q. Or mentoring them.

JEFF GORDON: Most of the things I talk to those guys about are not racing related. It's really how to handle yourself and the pressures, the hectic schedule, the business side of things that come along with being a NEXTEL Cup driver because that can be a huge distraction and take away from your performance on the racetrack. Even though it is performance related, it's not really what we talk about.

Obviously Kyle, he's very young and aggressive and a great talent, but sometimes his emotions get the best of him, and that's just being young and trying to learn from your experiences. I don't even know if I need to say a whole lot to him. I think just getting slapped on the wrist will help that in a big way.

Q. Do you think his problems are more just because of his general age or really just trying to ?? a combination of trying to learn things?

JEFF GORDON: Everybody's personality is different and their demeanor is different, so you've got to take that into account, how you were brought up and everything else. But I think that being young in this Series and having the pressures on you that are on you can definitely affect how you handle yourself. You know, I think all of us have been there, all of us have been through those experiences, and you just hope that you learn from them and try to do better the next time.

Q. Do you find yourself kind of pulling him aside, doing some things off the track?

JEFF GORDON: There's been times I wanted to, but I pretty much left that up to Rick Hendrick. He's got an even more powerful voice than I'll ever have.

Q. After last season, what do you need to concentrate on from here on out to make the Chase for the Cup?

JEFF GORDON: We've definitely got to get our performance up at tracks like this and Michigan coming up, and we've got to take advantage of the tracks we do run good at, the road courses, the short tracks, the super speedways like Daytona.

There's no doubt we're capable of making the Chase, but really, some of the things that are going on with us right now is we're thinking a little bit further ahead than that. We want to be in the Chase, but we want to be a threat for the Championship. We know where we're at right now, we're not capable of going for the Championship. We're capable of being in the Chase, but we want more than that, and that's what we're searching for and that's why we're not afraid to experiment to a certain degree at a lot of these race tracks.

Q. Can you preview Michigan, talk about what approach you take to that track?

JEFF GORDON: Well, I'm looking forward to going back there. We've learned a lot since last year and I've always loved that racetrack. It's just big and fast and wide and fairly smooth. I think that hopefully what we've been learning, it's going to pay off for us there in Michigan. It's always been one of my favorites.

Q. One more final question on the team, is it fair to say that you're building a team, and it's more than just you and Steve, it's also the whole team having to come together?

JEFF GORDON: Yeah, I mean, we needed to do that. You know, last year basically when we didn't perform, it was time to restructure a bit. Even though I knew we were going to be bringing in a fairly fresh and guy young as a crew chief, I still feel confident in the people that we have surrounding him and myself and the resources that we have that we ?? I said early on, I didn't expect us to come out of the box as the best team, but I'd like to end the season as the best team. I'm just hoping that we get there before the Chase starts, not as the Chase ends.

Q. No driver has ever won here from the ninth starting position. Any idea why? Is that just a fluke kind of thing?

JEFF GORDON: I have no idea, but based on that, I hope I don't qualify ninth today (laughter).

BEHIND THE HAULER CHAT WITH JEFF BURTON, NO. 31 CINGULAR WIRELESS MONTE CARLO SS:

WHAT ARE YOUR EXPECTATIONS FOR THIS WEEKEND? "Well, hopefully we can make some good stuff happen this weekend, but the results will speak for themselves. How we get prepared today and on Saturday will determine how well we can run on Sunday."

HAVING HAD A COUPLE OF NOT-SO-GREAT SEASONS, DOES BEING BACK IN THE TOP 10 NOW MAKE YOU APPRECIATE IT MORE? "Yeah, I think that's a fair point. I don't want to tell you that you take for granted that running well is part of what you're going to do, but I think when you do run well for an extended period of time, that's kind of what happens. And then when you don't run well, it's really hard to take and it's hard to understand. Then when you start running well again, it's invigorating but at the same time, you know it's a precious thing. I think you hold it in higher regard. You can talk about how hard it is and you can talk about the challenges of the sport, but until you deal with the challenges of the sport, you really don't understand them. So certainly, the way we've run this year has been really promising and it's been an awaking for me and hopefully we can continue that. Running bad is no fun. We're not here to run bad. We're here to run well and compete at the highest level -- as every team is. Sometimes when you lose what you've got, you understand what it was. And I think that's what happened here."

CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THE '95 HOOSIER RACE HERE WITH YOUR BROTHER, WARD, AND GEOFF BODINE? "Yeah, we came here with an advantage over what everybody else had. The Hoosier was just superior at that point on this race track. Ward (Burton) and Joe Nemechek and I, and Geoffrey Bodine really had fast cars. It was actually a great learning opportunity because it put us in a position where we had an advantage over everybody and it enabled us to learn because we had better stuff and that enabled us to run faster than everybody else, but it put us in a position to learn a lot. I think that was important. It was cool to come here for the first time and be able to compete and have a chance to win.

"Honestly, we could have won this first race we ran here. It didn't work out for us. But that was a race where a lot of people were really complaining about the tire deal at that point."

WHAT IS YOUR APPROACH TO RUNNING AT THIS TRACK? "I think you hear a lot about having to sacrifice one corner to get the other two, and stuff like that, but I don't believe that. I think in today's times as competitive as this is, you've got to run well in every corner. You've got to attack this race track. You've got to go at it aggressively. But you've also got to go into this race knowing it's a really long race. You approach this race like you do the Coca-Cola 600. This is an exceptionally long race and things happen here quickly, but it takes a long time for this race to develop. Patience is really important, but you've also got to be aggressive. But you've got to attack this race track. If you don't attack it, you won't go fast enough."

IS THE TUNNEL TURN AT POCONO THE TOUGHEST ON THE CIRCUIT? "I think the tunnel turn is a tough turn. I don't know if it's the toughest in NASCAR. I think that this race track is definitely a challenging race track. The front straightaway is the longest of any track that we go to. And you approach the corner with a tremendous amount of bumps and challenges over there; the tunnel is extremely challenging. But this race track is full of challenging corners. And I don't know if it's the hardest but it's certainly one of the hardest."

HAS IT CHANGED EVEN MORE BECAUSE YOU'RE NOT SHIFTING NOW? "It's changed a lot. It's actually made it a little bit harder. Not shifting has made it more difficult, which is why we were all shifting because it was better if we shifted. It's harder on the brakes, it's easier to overdrive the entrance to the corners, it's harder to accelerate off the corners, and it makes momentum through the corners more important. So it's made everything more important because you don't have that horsepower to kind of help you get through a problem. So I think that shifting has made it harder to run here. Although, I don't think it's changed the quality of the race. I think it's the same for everybody. I think it's made the corner speed more important than it was before."

HOW IMPORTANT IS IT TO BE IN THE TOP 10 AT THIS POINT IN THE SEASON LEADING UP TO THE CHASE? "Oh, it's definitely important. Jimmie Johnson and Matt Kenseth can probably breathe pretty easily, but the rest of the field is in a fight just to get in the Chase. If you look at points -- we're seventh in points -- and we're only 100 out of sixth and 102 or so out of fifth -- everybody that's in the top two or three feel pretty good about themselves, but the rest of us understand that were in a fight and we're not guaranteed a spot. So it's a premium for us. The great thing about a shorter schedule (leading into the Chase) is that it makes the races more important. That's really cool. The hardest thing about a shorter schedule is it makes the races more important. You don't have as much time to make mistakes. We had a lot of mistakes early in the year and we fell back quickly. We had three races in a row where we had bad finishes and we fell back quickly."

DOES NOT SHIFTING CHANGE THIS RACE? "The no shifting has changed out outlook on the race track because downshifting actually helps your entrance speed into (Turn) 1. It slows you down a little bit. You don't have to use as much brake. You had more gear, so when you accelerated the engine was helping you get off the corner. Your center of the corner speed was important, but it's even more important today. And it's made big differences. It's a lot harder. But it's the same for everybody and it's whoever takes advantage of it the best will do the best."

SO DOES IT BOIL DOWN TO THE DRIVER? "No, I don't think so. I don't think it's whoever is smarter or anything like that. I don't think that's the case. I just think it may changes your strategy a little bit."

IF THIS WAS A NIGHT RACE, WOULD IT BE EASIER ON THE DRIVERS? "The races need to be when the fans what them to be, not when the teams want them to be. If the fans want them at night, then that's when they should be. But it's our job to be in shape and physically conditioned so that we can do whatever comes to us and that's not NASCAR's responsibility to take care of us. It's all about what the fans want. It's not about what the teams and drivers want. The fans are what make this sport work and if night racing is what they want then that's what should happen."

IF A REPORTER WERE TO BE A PART OF YOUR PIT CREW, WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE? "Stay out of the way (laughs). The main thing is to just have fun and learn all you can. This Team Cingular is a good group and any reporter would have a good time with them. Just come and relax and enjoy yourself and stay out of the way."

ON TOYOTA COMING INTO NASCAR CUP RACING "Toyota is going to come in and try to compete at the highest level, which is what Chevrolet and Ford and Dodge are doing at the moment. I don't know how it's going to change the sport -- I just don't understand that yet and neither does anybody else. One of the things that I know isn't a positive is that instead of coming in and trying to apply existing teams, they're bringing in all new teams. We're to the point of having too many teams now. And to have 48 or 49 teams isn't in the best interest of our sport. You're going to have pretty good teams going home and sponsors going home and that's not a good thing from the start. If you're sponsoring the Red Sox, you're not guaranteed to be in the playoffs, but you're guaranteed to play. That's not necessarily the case here. So that, already, I know is not a positive thing. Coming in and raising the cost of racing won't be good either. At the same time, America has been made great by free enterprise. It's been made successful by free enterprise and you can't a company for wanting to participate like that."

BEHIND THE HAULER CHAT WITH KYLE BUSCH, NO. 5 KELLOGG'S MONTE CARLO SS:

On his test at Sonoma:
"The test at Sonoma went very well. I was actually very proud of the way everything went there. We took the same car that we had a chance to win with in Mexico City, the Busch Series car. We fooled around a little bit with some carburetor stuff and hit on some chassis things. We unloaded and we were running a minute seventeen, sixteen. By the time we were done we were running sixteen forty so we were very proud of that."

On the first time he raced at this track. How tough was it then and what do you think of it now?
"It's not that bad of a track to try to get used to. It's a pretty simple place. You have three different distinct straightaways and three different distinct corners. The first time I was here was in an ARCA car and it was very fun. I enjoyed it a lot. We were able to shift it. That was probably the most fun about this place. It's an oval where you're shifting it so it was pretty neat. To be able to come back now, it's a little bit different because you're not able to shift and it's not as much fun. You're pretty low off the corners and you're kind of waiting for the motor to catch up. It's a place where you definitely have to keep momentum going somewhat similar to what a Busch car is anywhere else."

On the equipment he receives from Hendrick Motorsports in relation to the amount of talented drivers they have:
"This year has been the biggest year we've been able to share everything and do what we wanted to do. The crew chiefs are working awesome together. The drivers are working pretty good together in being able to share everything. We're starting a new trend this weekend. Everybody is going to try to get together after practice and talk about things and make sure that everybody is on the same exact page instead of just having the interiors running back and forth grabbing notes here and there. We're going to be able to sit down and discus stuff. We've been really trying to work together and make it a whole organization and a company that we can make changes to and anybody that has a suggestions so we can make it better."

On the possibility of Casey Mears moving to the 25 car:
"It wouldn't bother me. Anybody that comes along that wants to be a part of Hendrick Motorsports, I'm more than happy to bring them into the table. It'd be a great opportunity for him to showcase his talents with Hendrick Motorsports. I've got no problems with Casey Mears. I don't even really know Casey Mears so it'd be a great opportunity for us to really get to know each other and sit down and discuss things and have the past behind us."

Will it really help to share information with the other drivers?
"I think so. Not necessarily for myself but everybody will be able to gain from it, being able to discuss things about the car, what works and what didn't work. It will be more thrown out there instead of the interiors running back and forth."

On doing the Cup and Busch races this weekend in different locations:
"It's going to be a challenge but I'm optimistic about it. I'm very confident in Hendrick Motorsports' aviation department that they've got everything all worked out so we're able to do everything right without any scuffles. It's going to be fun. I'm looking forward to it. We're going to be here all day today and practice all day tomorrow. As soon as happy hour is over we'll jump on a plane and get down to Nashville and try to qualify and race the Busch car. Weather is probably the biggest issue here over the next couple of weeks. As long as it cooperates we'll be good in time for it to work out fine."

How do you look forward to those weekends compared to a regular race weekend?
"It's not anything different than anything else. I'll be able to sleep on the plane hopefully and get a little bit of rest that way. Otherwise as far as having to travel back and forth, it's not really a big deal."

Is the Chase on your mind this early?
"It was on our mind in Daytona. You want to be able to come out of Daytona strong and go into California and Vegas strong. It's definitely a lot easier to start the season off stronger than it is trying to catch back up later. We tried that last year. It didn't work for us. We got ourselves in a predicament that we couldn't dig ourselves out of. This year we're in the top 10 right now. We just need to keep ourselves going that way and keep going strong. Last week we had a great top five which kind of brought us back to where we need to be. If we could keep going with those and some of the guys in front of us have a little bit of back luck, I don't wish it upon them, but if they do then we can try to pick up some more ground."

What do you like about Hendrick Motorsports?
"The depth of the organization that we have and all the people. Everybody that is involved is very well into Hendrick Motorsports and making it a successful place to work and easy environment to work in as well as making it a successful one."

On the turns at Pocono:
"Turn two is such a fast, 90-degree corner. It's almost worse than Indy corners. It's a weird corner to have to get into especially when the bump started to develop in there a couple of years ago. I know they laid down some asphalt and smoothed that out but I don't think it ever really fixed itself. It's the tunnel turn. You're always going to have bumps over a tunnel. All in all it's something that's a part of this place and you have to deal with it."

How did you find out about the news on Brian Vickers?
"I found out on Jayski."

Where you shocked?
"It was there earlier this year and I never really questioned Brian about it or anything like that. I know there are a lot of rumors that float around so I never really questioned it. This time it came up on there and I saw it. Later on that day Marshall called me and told me that it was fact."

On the season to date:
"It's been tough. There's been definitely some areas where I need to work on things as well as to try and turn situations around in a different way and get a different view point of it. For myself it's been a good season overall. I'm happy with our performance. I think that the Kellogg's/Carquest team has done a great job for me. All my guys have really worked hard and dug in deep and they've given me great race cars. That's all I could really ask for. Everything else is on my own."

On the expectations of him:
"I put a lot bigger expectations on myself than anybody else probably. I wish last year we were in this spot, 10th place, when we had a shot at getting in the Chase but we weren't. It's kind of a shame on my part as far as not being in it. But here we are. We have an opportunity to do well and get into the Chase and try to go out for the championship. It's all about coming down to Richmond where you are in or you are out. Hopefully we have the opportunity to be in it and go after it."

Has your brother Kurt helped you out at all?
"Kurt has helped me out a lot. I've definitely gotten some great advice from him. I've definitely gotten some great advice from Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson as well as Brian Vickers. I'm all around the board. I've been able to talk to a few people and get some good advice."