MARTINSVILLE, Va. -- These days, when you're talking Martinsville Speedway and trouble, two topics head the agenda: Jimmie Johnson and brakes.

“

I think Jimmie and I are always going to be really good friends but we might be better friends 15, 20 years from now because right now I'm a competitor like every other competitor out there that wants to beat him.

”

-- JEFF GORDON

Jeff Gordon, from whom Johnson's wrested the title of "Mr. Martinsville" thanks to five wins in the past six races -- including the past two and six total -- knows a good bit about both.

And after both Saturday practices for Sunday's Tums Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville were cancelled by rain, Gordon's perfectly positioned to put both into play.

Gordon himself won four of six races at the paperclip-dimensioned track between 2003 and 2005 and he has seven wins total. But 'round these parts he might be more recalled for pounding race winner Johnson's rear bumper while fruitlessly trying to move Johnson out of the way in spring 2007.

Still, the place has a lot of comfort for Gordon.

"When we come to Martinsville, this is a track we have a lot of confidence in," Gordon said. "I feel like we have momentum right now and we want to keep pushing forward with that momentum and continue to put good, solid finishes in and hopefully start putting some wins together. This is a track where we can do that."

Gordon was asked on Friday if he would hit Johnson to rattle his cage, a la the late Dale Earnhardt. Even though Gordon did just that to Rusty Wallace at least twice at Bristol, and appeared to be trying to do the same thing to Johnson in 2007, he denied having that style in his arsenal.

"That has never been my style -- it just hasn't," Gordon said. "I race guys hard. I race guys clean and I race them how they race me. I think you do have to rattle their cage, but to me, the way you have to rattle their cage is you have to outrun them; you have to show what kind of team you are.

"That's obviously a tall order [with Johnson's team]. They've been very, very strong. They've got momentum and they're going to be tough [Sunday]. But I do think we're capable of beating them here. But we're going to have to really work hard at it to make it happen."

With just five races remaining, Johnson has an unprecedented 90-point lead on his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Mark Martin. And Gordon admitted if his team is to have much chance at a fifth championship, a dominant victory Sunday would be about necessary.

"If we just finish ahead of [Johnson] by one or two positions, that's not going to win this championship," Gordon said. "We could do that every weekend -- it's not going to win the championship. We pretty much have to win the next five races and do it that way or they're going to have to have trouble."

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On Friday, Gordon said brakes were not much of a concern to him, no matter how much practice he had.

"Years ago, I think we had more brake issues," Gordon said. "They've come so far. I think what's probably come further is the cooling, being able to keep them cool. It really has allowed us to not have to manage the brakes as we used to. If you're in the middle of the pack and you're running really hard you can still melt the [tire] bead or have some brake problems [but] I've run this race before, every lap as hard as I could and never even thought about trying to take care of the brakes and had no problem."

Gordon's crew chief Steve Letarte said losing Saturday's practice meant nothing to him.

"We ran all race trim [Friday] and I think everyone did nothing but race runs, if you look at the lap [times]," Letarte said. "For our company, at least three if not all four cars normally come off the truck in qualifying trim everywhere. We usually don't make any race runs on [opening day] and the only reason we did it here was because of the weather [forecast]."

Particularly at Martinsville, Letarte said he'd rest easier knowing his and Gordon's race practice was in the notebook.

"You always have a concern, if a car is assembled at the shop, after being completely torn down -- I've seen a lot of fluke things happen -- so it's always great to have laps," Letarte said. "I think without a doubt the advancement of [brake] pads, rotors, calipers -- they're stronger than ever, but they're also being taxed more than ever.

"So you as a team need to do a very good job making sure you're as efficient as possible. But without a doubt, the drivers still have a hand in it. I think any driver here can burn any brakes off [the car] if they want. So they need to be very conscious of how they're abusing the brakes and try to keep them on there for the last 100 laps."

Gordon just looked intense when he contemplated completing his own assignment versus Johnson's No. 48 Chevrolet team.

"The No. 48 team, they've earned the position that they're in -- they've worked hard at it, they're a great, great team and I think they're in a position to make history," Gordon said. "I think there's something very special about that."

But Gordon appeared to be gritting his teeth when he faced that reality.

"Honestly, I haven't even thought about that a whole lot," Gordon said. "I'm really more focused -- and my mindset is on us winning the championship. Out of Homestead, whatever happens there I'll be more than happy to actually think about it and give you my opinion more.

"I think Jimmie and I are always going to be really good friends but we might be better friends 15, 20 years from now because right now I'm a competitor like every other competitor out there that wants to beat him. Because I'm at Hendrick Motorsports and his teammate, I see everything that goes on and I'm aware of the setups and the driving styles and the data and all those things and sometimes that can make it even more frustrating when you're getting beat.

"But at the end of the day I respect him, I think he's a great guy and a great race car driver. I think he's pushed all of us in the sport. That team has pushed all of us in the sport to be better, to push ourselves harder and to step up. So I'm thankful for that and I don't have any regrets about anything."

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