Jeff Gordon is seeking his first title since 2001. Credit: Autostock

Chase Q&A: Jeff Gordon

LOUDON, N.H. -- Jeff Gordon is arguably the favorite to win his fifth series title and the inaugural Nextel Cup.

The new championship format -- the Chase for the Nextel Cup -- pits the 10 best teams in the sport at this time.

On Saturday, Gordon sat down with the media to discuss a variety of Chase topics on the eve of the first race in the Chase, Sunday's Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway.

Do you expect to see team orders come into play during the Chase?

Jeff Gordon: I hope not. I think team orders really don't exist in the regular series and I'd be surprised if they play much of a role in the final 10 races.

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But if that was to be the case, I would hope and I would think that it would be okay that if you're running 10th and your teammate is running sixth, if he can get that one position it sure would help him out and maybe you could give him that position.

But (if) we need a caution (and someone intentionally causes one) -- that's not team orders. That kind of stuff should not be allowed. I think NASCAR is going to be paying close attention to those types of things happening and monitoring radios.

Whoever wins this championship, the only way they can feel good about it, is that they did it by racing hard and putting their best effort out there -- not because somebody else did something to give it to them.

What's your take on competing with your Hendrick Motorsports teammate, Jimmie Johnson and sharing information?

Jeff Gordon: You've got to understand that Jimmie and I are very close. The teams are very close. We're never going to stop sharing information all the way to the final race as far as I'm concerned. I know I'm not going to stop doing that.

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But when we get on the racetrack and they drop that green flag, we're going to race hard and we're going to race smart. When it comes down to the final laps of a race or to the final races, we're going to race one another for the wins and for the championship.

I hope it comes down to that. I've never won a race by going in there and doing something completely stupid -- especially with my teammate. I feel like I'm always thinking about how I'm going to pass and do it as cleanly as possible.

It doesn't always happen clean, but I don't think you've ever seen me wreck a guy to win a race. You may have seen me move a guy to win a race, but I've never wrecked a guy -- and I wouldn't do it any different to Jimmie or anybody else.

What is the level of stress and pressure put on the teams during the final 10 races?

Jeff Gordon: If we say anything to these (crew) guys it's to not stop anything they've been doing. It's just another race and we already put every effort out there every weekend to do our best and I don't want those guys to think about anything being any different than anything else from one weekend to the next.

The odds makers say you're the favorite for this championship, but how do you see it?

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Jeff Gordon: I don't know how you pick a favorite. It's so tight. It's so close. I think anybody can do it. Who knows what's going to happen? But I do feel like our team is strong and the chemistry is there. We're basically racing ourselves.

I'm not thinking about what other guys we have to beat. I'm just making sure that we don't try to outdo ourselves and that we just keep doing what we're doing.

I think we've gotten better as the year has gone on and that we're really at the top of our game right now, which I'm excited about. We're coming up on 10 racetracks that are good for us. We're just going to focus on our team and our cars and our program and our laps times and not pay particular attention to the rest of the guys.

Do you have any particular goals for these final 10 races, such as leading laps to gain bonus points?

Jeff Gordon: I do that every weekend. Every weekend, if I have the opportunity to lead a lap, then I try to lead a lap. Every weekend, if I can lead the most laps, I try to lead the most laps. If I can win the race, I try to win the race. So I don't know how you do it any different.

Is it more critical? Yeah. But can you do anything any more than you already do? No. If you're driving to the limits of the car 10 weeks ago, how do you drive further than that or harder than that this weekend?

How do you expect the drivers outside the top-10 to race the guys that are contending for the championship?

Jeff Gordon: I hope they race the same as they always do, which is to try to win. They're out there trying to win as well. I race every guy every weekend for that position and trying to move forward and trying to win the race.

What do I expect? I think there are some guys who have a little chip on their shoulders because they didn't get into the top 10. I think there are some who will try to make a mark and try to do certain things to stand out.

I hope they don't take it too far and I certainly hope it doesn't change the outcome of the championship. But the guys in the top 10 have to respect the fact that those guys are still out there racing their butts off and racing for wins and that shouldn't change.

I hope that they have the same respect for us and the fact that we're racing for wins as well -- but we're also racing for a championship.

Where's the line on incidents on the racetrack?

Jeff Gordon: Accidents happen. The line is always drawn when there's anything intentional. That's what makes this thing pretty interesting. Not only are the 10 guys trying to race one another, they're racing the other guys out there on the racetrack and they don't want to tick any of those guys off because they don't have near as much to lose as you do.

So if you go out there and you mess with somebody and you make an enemy, that enemy can cost you the championship -- not necessarily because they might wreck you, but just because they might race you different and race extremely hard and not do anything to help you.

Are you doing any experimenting in your tests, more than you normally would?

Jeff Gordon: No, not really. We pretty much prepare the same for every test. We take all the knowledge that we have up to that point and try to be creative and think of new ways to get better.

About the biggest difference right now is that a lot of tests are one-day tests. So we've been able to test at a lot of tracks this whole year because of the one-day test scenario. Phoenix is the only one that I know of where we're going to do a two-day test.

How was Mark Martin at your recent MTN appearance?

Jeff Gordon: I wasn't there. I had to make an appearance for DuPont in Boston. But I know he was jazzed about it. He said he was probably the oldest guy ever on there, but that he was "down with it (laughing)."

Do you think Mark Martin is having fun with this Chase concept?

Jeff Gordon: Yeah, I think he is. It's an honor to have Mark in this top 10. I think he's a serious threat. He's a well-deserving guy and a deserving talent that belongs not only in this top 10, but belongs in the list of names of drivers who have won championships in this series.

What was it like being on Regis & Kelly, again?

Jeff Gordon: This was a whole different experience. Fall fashion is not exactly a racecar driver's forte (so) we were a little out of our element. Back in the Green Room, what we were agreeing to wear and not agreeing to wear was pretty funny. We had a good time (and) made the best of it.

What was something one of the guys wouldn't wear?

Jeff Gordon: Jeremy Mayfield was not going to wear that argyle sweater.

Mark Martin said drivers might have the same owners, but that you couldn't be a teammate and win this championship. Do you agree?

Jeff Gordon: On the racetrack, I agree with that. When you're on the racetrack, you battle for a win and for a championship (and) the teammate thing goes out the window when you're on the racetrack in the closing laps.

I know Jimmie races me hard and I race him hard, but when we're here in the garage and we're trying to qualify the best we can and we're trying to get our racecars working as best we can, we're constantly talking about what we're doing. And the crew chiefs are doing the same thing."