Hendrick drivers ready to welcome Junior to team (cont'd)

There was a time when it seemed Mears might be the odd man out instead of Busch, but that changed in recent weeks. Right about the time Mears was registering his first Nextel Cup victory in the Coca-Cola 600 over Memorial Day weekend, contract extension talks between Hendrick and Busch were reaching a final breaking point.

That cleared the way for Mears to stay even as talks to bring Earnhardt on board at Hendrick suddenly heated up.

"Obviously, if he came, somebody had to go," Johnson said. "I didn't know who was going to leave. I was really nervous about that whole situation and I don't think it's made anyone comfortable. I know it's been real hard on Rick, but he's got to take care of business."

Gordon said that he thinks Earnhardt is the perfect fit for the Hendrick organization, while hinting that perhaps Busch wasn't.

"Put this on the record: I'm pretty sure that this will be the last person he ever drives for," Gordon said of Earnhardt. "I know what kind of person Rick Hendrick is, what kind of organization we have -- and once you come here you don't want to go anywhere else. It's just that good of an organization."

Yet in the end, that is not the conclusion that was drawn by the departing Busch, who said Friday that he thinks it is in his best interests to seek a fresh start -- and no doubt a huge contract -- somewhere else.

"I know it was a very difficult thing to make those decisions, but the way I heard it played out was that it was fairly mutual. I think it's going to be best for Hendrick and for Kyle," Gordon said. "I think Kyle is a tremendous talent, but the chemistry never seemed to be there. He's just had to fight through some things.

"I'm excited to see how he pulls himself together this year because I think he has a lot to offer to teams out there. I think he's going to find out when he makes his move and goes forward that he's actually happier with it himself and more comfortable wherever he goes."

Johnson admitted that he was surprised Hendrick ultimately was able to land Earnhardt.

"I was really surprised," Johnson said. "With driver contracts and sponsorship contracts in place, I just really didn't think it was possible. We all knew that every team would try and make it happen. There was a lot of give and take going on behind closed doors to get this to take place at Hendrick Motorsports, and that's what happened."

He said he called Earnhardt shortly after hearing the news to congratulate him and welcome him to his new team.

"I could hear in his voice how happy and how excited," Johnson said. "He's like a little kid in a candy store right now. ... I obviously support his decision to come to Hendrick Motorsports. It's a fantastic company, a great owner, a great team -- and it's all in front of him. The world is in his hands and he can certainly take advantage of it at our company."

Asked how long he expected the Earnhardt story to be the center of attention around Nextel Cup in general and around Hendrick Motorsports in particular, Johnson smiled before replying with a laugh: "Forever. The next talk will be about the sponsor and then I'm sure it's going to be about testing and then it'll be about the '08 season -- so the buzz will not go away, I'm sure."