Mears is on the move, and others may soon follow (cont'd)

"Because we have good relationships there at Hendrick Motorsports, I think Rick and everybody wanted to see a multiple-year deal and see me get some consistency," Mears said. "I think people made decisions because they had to make decisions. I don't know why everything's gone down. That would probably be a better question for Rick and some of the guys with the team. He understands my situation more than anybody, and getting some stability would be good. But obviously decisions were made for certain reasons."

It won't be an easy parting. Mears has close relationships with many members of the Hendrick fold. He and two-time defending Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson have been friends since the days when they both raced on dirt. Mears spent a few days earlier this week with Johnson on vacation in Aspen, Colo.

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It hurts me as a friend and a teammate that this is taking place. The release has been out, the decision has been made. At this point, I wish Casey the best. I'll do anything and everything I can to help him and his team finish this year on a positive note.

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JIMMIE JOHNSON

"I feel really bad for Casey and the 5 team. There has not been a lack of effort to get that working right," Johnson said. "A situation has developed that Casey is going to move on. It hurts me as a friend and a teammate that this is taking place. I know it's the same with the company and Rick, but it's kind of the way it is. The release has been out, the decision has been made. At this point, I wish Casey the best. I'll do anything and everything I can to help him and his team finish this year on a positive note."

So what comes next? Despite some reports that the team might split the No. 5 car between veteran Mark Martin and Nationwide Series driver Brad Keselowski next year, indications are that Hendrick doesn't want to field a car with no chance of contending for the championship. Whoever lands in that ride will likely be in it full time. As for Mears, his name has been connected to the fourth car that will debut at Richard Childress Racing next season.

"They're a great organization, obviously, and if that were an opportunity, that would be great," Mears said. "Right now, I'm just trying to put the feelers out to everybody, and just trying to see what exactly is out there and what the opportunities are. So far I've seen some really good opportunities."

Whomever RCR hires, Jeff Burton believes he needs to fit with the company's three current drivers. "I think we have to have a guy that we can work with, and by the way, he has to be able to work with us. We're going to have to bend some. Things are going to be different. We're going to have to learn how to work with another driver. It's hard," he said.

"You get two drivers working together, that's hard. You get three drivers working together, that's harder yet. We're going to have to work hard at it. It's not going to come naturally. But every one of our drivers supports the fourth team, so naturally every one of our drivers will support the fourth team's driver. But that guy's going to have to come in with an open mind."

Right now, there's no shortage of possibilities. The Sprint Cup garage has been awash in speculation about pending driver moves, with Newman and Truex in the final years of their respective contracts, Childress needing another driver, Mark Martin's future uncertain and Stewart reportedly ready to bolt Joe Gibbs Racing for an ownership share in Hendrick-aided Haas CNC. Friday, there was only one certainty -- that Greg Biffle will stay with Roush Fenway Racing. As expected, the driver signed an extension to pilot his 3M-backed No. 16 car for three more years.

"I weighed certainly all of my options out, and it felt like the 16 car is where I really wanted to spend my next three years driving," he said. " A lot of things went into making a decision on where I was going to be. One was Ford's commitment to the racing program and supporting us technologically, and Roush Fenway's commitment to put [general manager] Robbie Reiser in the position that they did. I just feel like we're making all the right decisions at our company right now to win championships and races, and I like all the guys on the 16 team. We've developed a pretty good relationship (read more)."