LOUDON, N.H. -- Martin Truex Jr. has become the most dangerous of all commodities behind the wheel of a race car this weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway: a guy with an axe to grind, nothing to lose, a goal in sight and the machinery to make something happen.

“

Yeah, I think this is [my breaking point]. The nice guy seems to always get pushed around and I'm tired of being the nice guy -- I'm tired of getting pushed around. I'm not going to take it anymore.

”

-- MARTIN TRUEX JR.

On Friday, three members of the Truex family: "Big Martin," a former Northeast winner in Busch North and Modified,; Martin Jr., a two-time [Nationwide] Series champion, and littlest brother Ryan gathered to announce that Ryan, the defending [K&N] East Series champion, would make his Nationwide Series debut next month at Gateway International Raceway.

But all anyone wanted to talk about was "Little Martin's" mid-race tiff with Jeff Gordon last weekend at Infineon Raceway. That incident put Truex Jr. back in the Toyota/Save Mart 350's field and got his No. 56 Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota destroyed when a chain-reaction wreck on a restart involved more than a half-dozen cars.

Truex Jr. almost barked a response when he was asked if he'd either spoken with Gordon or if his own perspective had changed in the five days since a sure top-10 finish became 42nd -- and a 93-point deficit to a spot in the Chase became 157 coming into New Hampshire -- the actual start of the 10-event "Race to the Chase."

Truex Jr. said he'd received a voice mail from Gordon, which he hadn't returned.

"No I don't feel differently, but why should I," Truex Jr. said, almost bristling to the point it was nerve-wracking to be near him. "Why would I feel different? I'm asking you? He left me a voice mail but I still feel the same way -- I'm in the same position I was in [Sunday]. So why would I feel different?

"I accept his apology, yes -- but things are gonna change between me and him, that's just the bottom line."

And, Truex Jr. said, so would his mode of racing. (Continued)