AVONDALE, Ariz. -- Homestead is correctly billed as "Ford Championship Weekend," but the showdown in the Chase for the Nextel Cup -- featuring Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon -- is Sunday at Phoenix International Raceway.

And after two days of practice and qualifying, four on-track sessions and 226 laps of the variably-banked one-mile oval preparing for the Checker Auto Parts 500, the Hendrick Motorsports teammates have perfectly set the stage.

Gordon, the four-time Cup champion who won here in April in the Car of Tomorrow's first visit to Phoenix, trails defending Nextel Cup champion Johnson by 30 points. Johnson's put himself in that position by winning three consecutive races and Gordon knows the pressure's on.

"It's definitely been a heck of a battle -- Jimmie and those guys have done a fantastic job the last three weeks, there's no doubt about that, the wins speak for themselves," Gordon said. "We've got to step it up. There's no hiding that and I hope we can pull that off right here in Phoenix."

Gordon out-ran his teammate in three of the first four on-track sessions this weekend, including out-qualifying him, third to sixth; and beating him in Happy Hour, fifth to seventh.

But the bottom line is, the most the Hendrick men were separated by in any session was nine spots, and only 0.15 seconds on the clock. After Happy Hour, both Gordon's crew chief Steve Letarte and Johnson's team leader Chad Knaus were pleased.

"I think we're pretty decent," Letarte said. "During Happy Hour, the track definitely had a little less grip than it did in the first [Saturday] practice. I think it took whatever problem you had and accentuated it a bit -- where our loose-in got a little bit worse.

"But we just debriefed and I think we've got a good idea what we have to fix, and this is a racetrack where a driver can really, really help you during a race. And I absolutely don't want anyone but Jeff Gordon in my car under those circumstances -- there's no doubt in my mind."

In Happy Hour, Gordon trailed quick man Martin Truex Jr., Kasey Kahne, Hendrick teammate Casey Mears and David Stremme. Johnson was seventh, and Knaus was satisfied.

"I feel pretty good about it right now," Knaus said after his driver practiced 14 more laps total than Gordon on Saturday. "The car was pretty good through practice and we feel pretty good about it -- but there are a lot of guys that are real fast, though, so it's going to be a real good race.

"There are a lot of guys who get around this place real well, and Jimmie's one of them, fortunately, so I feel good about it."

A year ago, Kevin Harvick won this event in the last race here for the standard cars; with Johnson second and Gordon fourth. Gordon, however, did win the Car of Tomorrow's debut here in the spring, and he gathers some confidence from that.

"It definitely helps with the situation that we're in now, being 30 points back -- the fact that we came here and ran well and won this race [in the spring]," Gordon said. "It was a night race so it changes it a little bit, but it definitely gives us the confidence that we need at this point being 30 points behind."

For their careers, even though Gordon has twice as many Phoenix starts as Johnson, Johnson's stats marginally favor him with an average finish of 7.2 overall and 6.4 in this event, to Gordon's 8.1 overall and 8.2 in this race.

Much has been made of the great level of friendship that Johnson and Gordon enjoy -- in fact, on independent trips to Mexico last week by the drivers and their wives; they actually ran into each other and spent a short time together. Their crew chiefs share the love, as well.

"I think, fortunately for us, we have the two best drivers in the garage and I'm fortunate enough to work with one [of them]," Letarte said. "I think [Gordon's] career and his resume says enough; and I love it's our teammate [Johnson] that's pushing us, trying to be better and I think that's a perfect world, how you'd like to design it but there's no guy I'd like to work for than [Gordon]."

To Letarte's point, the day started with a 50-minute session that was led by Kurt Busch followed by Truex Jr., Greg Biffle, Jamie McMurray and Dale Earnhardt Jr. Gordon was eighth, and Johnson 16th; which resembled their standing in the weekend's first practice, when Johnson was fifth and Gordon 14th.

What's led up to this point is the perfect entree to what's been a unique Chase.

"I think in the long run it's going to strengthen our friendship and our relationship as teammates but to me I don't think anybody could handle this situation better than we have -- but there's no doubt that the intensity is there," Gordon said. "When we get to the racetrack we're talking [but] we really are focused on our teams and our performance.

"You see it in practice. We go put a number up, they put a number up, we put a number up and we're just constantly being competitive and I think it's a pretty awesome thing to go through and experience and I think it's pushing both of us to go harder, to be better drivers and the teams to be better teams as well."

It puts the pressure on Gordon, who's been there before -- in fact four times in his previous successful title battles; because he knows what he's battling.

"It makes it more difficult because I know how good his team is and his cars and the equipment is -- and how good he is," Gordon said. "I think Jimmie's one of the best guys out here and when you're battling a guy that is that solid and strong and that good and you know what kind of equipment he has and resources behind that -- and the fact that they won the championship last year -- then yeah, that definitely adds a lot of pressure."

But Gordon said that would make winning his fifth championship this season all the more special.

"I think it'd mean the world to me," Gordon said. "There's a lot of me that wishes the Chase never had come along because I think that the way I drive and the way our team is so consistent, that we're capable of getting more championships under the old system.

"But the point system is what it is and that makes it more challenging for us, that much more competitive for everybody and I think it makes it harder to win. That only makes it more rewarding.

"We've got four [championships]. To be able to get to five would absolutely be amazing. We want it bad. We want it really bad. We're really close. We've got the car, the team to do it and you don't want to let those opportunities get away from you especially when we've been able to be competitive and consistent in the Chase.

"We've won two [Chase] races, got a lead and when you get that you want it even that much more and now we're a little bit behind. Now we're the chaser and we're going to see what kind of fight that we have in us to go get it."