Gordon, Johnson poised to battle again at Martinsville (cont'd)

The fact that Gordon won the pole Friday could make it even more difficult for others such as Johnson to catch him. Gordon knows one basic fact: If no one can catch him at the outset and he stays out front most of the day, it will be hard for a repeat of the last Martinsville finish to occur.

"There is no question that when we win the pole, our chances for winning the race are increased. We have statistics that show that and back that up," Gordon said.

Friday's pole was Gordon's series-high seventh of the season. When it was suggested that his latest hot streak is demoralizing the rest of the Cup garage, Gordon did not apologize and said he intends to keep the pressure on.

"We cannot afford to get complacent," he said.

Johnson certainly doesn't intend to, either. He said that even though the bumpers line up on the COT and make it difficult to move someone out of the way who is running in front, he expects that Gordon might have learned something that will make it possible if they find themselves fighting for another win in similar circumstances as last time.

"We're a lot smarter now," Johnson said. "We've all had a lot more experience with the bumpers and passing people. I think it was so new into the COT phase that we were all sitting back on our heels saying, 'I can't believe that you can get away with that.'

"But it doesn't take long for us to figure it out. We know how to move each other now."

They also know how to put the drama of the last Martinsville race behind them, according to fellow driver Matt Kenseth.

"I don't think either one of them were that mad because they still finished first and second a few feet apart," Kenseth said. "I think it's fun when you can battle with friends or a teammate, and I think they're probably friends more than they're teammates.

"At the end of the day, you're still there to do the best you can for your respective team and sponsor and the guys who go over the wall. You still want to win. But if you can't win, you want a teammate to win or a friend to win. But certainly you're all out there for yourself at the end of the race and that's really the way it should be. That's really kind of what this sport is all about."

Johnson agreed with Kenseth's assessment.

Smiling, he added: "I wouldn't change a thing. It worked out well for me last time. I won the race."