Keselowski weighs future options, including Hendrick (cont'd)

Keselowski laughed when he said winning at Talladega "can't hurt," but to the same degree Earnhardt has said he's in no hurry to determine if Keselowski will drive for him next season, so too is Keselowski on his next step.

"I've only talked to Mr. Hendrick very briefly, so I haven't had any detailed discussions on next year with him," Keselowski said. "But that's down the road and I'm not going to try and rush that. We're going to take our time and stick with that because like I said, that's gotten me where I'm at, that relationship.

"So I don't want to run from it because there's a different opportunity or whatever or so to speak -- and that goes the same on the JR Motorsports deal on the Nationwide side and with Dale, and I don't want to run from that either because the things I was able to learn there are what got to me to where I can run competitively at the Cup level. Does this strengthen the negotiations? I'd like to think it does."

One thing it hasn't done is clarify whose car Keselowski might drive in the All-Star Race in two weeks, for which he qualified by winning Talladega.

"I went from being not even eligible to run the Open [qualifying race] to locked into the big show. That's pretty awesome," Keselowski said. "At this time we haven't got the All-Star situation figured out as far as what I'm driving and so forth."

But Keselowski's remarks proved he knows how his bread is buttered, so to speak.

"That's why the whole contract negotiation is very pivotal to the future of my career and I know that," Keselowski said. "HMS is what got me here and what's got me talking to you right now. I need to be a part of that if I want to continue to talk to you guys and continue to have the shot to win races."

Neither Keselowski nor Earnhardt had much to say about JR Motorsports fielding a Cup team in 2010.

"I would say anything is a possibility -- I wouldn't write anything off," Keselowski said. "I'm not sure I understand in the entirety the relationship of how it would work; I kind of stay away from that. It'll be interesting to see how it goes from there."

Earnhardt has already said he'd like Keselowski to keep driving his No. 88 Chevrolet in 2010. He's not as sure about taking his company to the Cup level.

"We would consider it, but we have to do what's right for the company and the business," Earnhardt said. "I feel like I just need to make sure that's the right thing to do for the business. It might not even be what Brad wants. He might want to jump into an established program, which I would, too. I'm sure he has some other opportunities that might be more entertaining."

But according to Keselowski, they'd probably not be more rewarding.