TALLADEGA, Ala. -- In the drivers' meeting prior to Sunday's event at Talladega Superspeedway, Jeff Gordon didn't hear the message he wanted to hear from NASCAR warning competitors against aggressive bump-drafting on the sport's biggest track. So the four-time series champion took it upon himself to speak up.

Gordon used the open question-and-answer portion of the meeting to tell NASCAR that, in his opinion, it was up to the sanctioning body to police aggressive drivers. "I don't believe there is a fine line," he said. That drew a response from series president Mike Helton, who countered that NASCAR couldn't keep its eyes on 43 cars at one time, and that the onus was on competitors as much as officials.

Gordon's concerns stemmed from Saturday's Busch race, in which he thought aggressive driving at times got out of control. Whether it was the multiple crashes that marred that event, or the exchange between Gordon and Helton on Sunday morning, the 43 drivers competing in the Aaron's 499 raced each other about as cleanly as they ever have on the sprawling 2.66-mile Talladega track.

Yes, there were accidents, a few of them multi-car pileups typical of restrictor-plate tracks. Yes, there was bump-drafting -- Gordon used such a push from Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson to win. But the aggressive "slam-drafting," which got so bad last season that NASCAR placed more officials around the racetrack to monitor it and barred the practice in the corners, was noticeably and welcomingly absent.

"I think NASCAR should be pleased with the drivers' attitudes, demeanors and the way they handled themselves on the track," said third-place finisher Kurt Busch. "To see that many quality cars at the end of the race, that's something we haven't seen at Talladega in years. I believe everybody did what they needed to."

Gordon, who on Sunday won his 77th career race to break a tie with the late Dale Earnhardt and claim sole possession of sixth place on NASCAR's all-time list, grew concerned about bump-drafting while watching Saturday's wreck-filled Busch event. He said he wasn't trying to speak for all the drivers, and he wasn't trying to prove a point to Tony Stewart, who earned a tongue-lashing this week for venting concerns about debris cautions not to NASCAR, but to listeners of his satellite radio program. Rather, Gordon spoke up when he felt the issue wasn't being fully addressed by NASCAR officials.

"I was waiting for them to address what we all saw in the Busch race, which was out of control, and I didn't hear it addressed. It was kind of a spur of the moment thing. I didn't have a chance this weekend to go up and talk to them. After I watched the Busch race, I wanted to go see them before the driver's meeting. I didn't get a chance to. I don't know, something sparked inside me, and I just had to say something," he said. (Continued)