As Seen and Heard Sunday on ESPN's NASCAR Countdown from the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Race at Michigan International Speedway

NASCAR DRIVER JEFF GORDON TO ESPN PIT REPORTER JAMIE LITTLE ON THE EMPHASIS OF EARNING EXTRA POINTS FOR WINS IN THE CHASE FOR THE NEXTEL CUP CHAMPIONSHIP - “If we were in the Chase we’d want to get bonus points for leading laps, leading the most laps, every point and every position counts. I think that you’ve got to give a lot credit to NASCAR in making the changes this year and pushing guys to win races as hard as you are. Last week was proof of that. I was pushing really hard, I wanted that win and had the opportunity to get it. I pushed too hard. I think that right now we’re in a position to do that and take those risks. Unfortunately that risk didn’t pay off for us and gave Tony (Stewart) 10 points instead. It was a tough week, but I’m excited to be back here at Michigan on the pole and with Steve Letarte as my crew chief.”

JAMIE LITTLE TO NASCAR DRIVER TONY STEWART – “Speaking of – this is the man (Tony Stewart) you gave the extra 10 points to.”

TONY STEWART TO JEFF GORDON - “Did I say thanks lately?”

JEFF GORDON – “Yeah, but you know what? While I was smiling about you spinning out going into Turn 1, you were smiling much bigger later.”

TONY STEWART – “I wasn’t smiling because I about blew the corner myself going, ‘Wait a minute. Did the sky just fall?’ ”

TONY STEWART, ON JEFF GORDON “GIVING” HIM THE EXTRA 10 POINTS – “He’s a father now and he understands. He’s really giving now and everything. He’s a kinder even gentler Jeff Gordon than before. I mean, he’s a great guy.”

JEFF GORDON – “You can repay me later.”

TONY STEWART – “I’ll bake you a cake or cookies or something.”

JEFF GORDON – “That would be good.”

From the Garage – NASCAR Driver Kyle Busch to Join Joe Gibbs Racing in 2008

NASCAR DRIVER KYLE BUSCH – “I think I’ve got some similarities with Tony. He’s actually probably more like me than I gave him credit for. Building that relationship with him has been fun and to learn from Tony and learn from his mistakes and the good things that he does … I think it’s going to be better, myself.

“Everybody said that the super team was Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Casey Mears, but I’d have to say that Joe Gibbs Racing is going to put up a strong fight for that title.”

TONY STEWART TO ESPN PIT REPORTER ALLEN BESTWICK ON KYLE BUSCH BECOMING A TEAMMATE IN 2008 - “I think it’s great. I think Kyle is a young talent and his passion about winning and being competitive is the same as Denny’s and mine. That’s what you want in a teammate. Him coming from the Hendrick organization over to ours, he’s going to be able to tell us what our strengths and weaknesses are compared to the Hendrick side. I think he’s going to be a good teammate.”

Mark Martin on Running a Partial Schedule and What He Enjoys in His Time Away from the Racetrack

NASCAR DRIVER MARK MARTIN, ON HIS WEEKENDS OFF – “Last weekend I was off and I went to a paintball tournament with my son Matt, that was great and that was on Saturday. And on Sunday, I had the remote control. I was on the couch and I watched you guys call the race. It was fantastic; y’all do a great job.”

Difference in strategy for drivers that sit in bubble positions of 10th – 14th

ESPN ANALYST AND NASCAR CUP CHAMPION RUSTY WALLACE - “There’s not a lot of strategy in NASCAR. Let me tell you what the strategy is. It’s hammer down and run as hard as you can run. You can ask these questions all you want, but these drivers want to win. They know if they lead a lot of laps and they win races, those points are going to come. If they start looking behind them and guarding themselves, those cats up front are going to drive off. So they’ve got to be bonsai, qualifying-style approach every single lap going for this championship.”

ESPN’s NASCAR Countdown, hosted by Suzy Kolber, had a live preview of the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series on Sunday at MIS. ESPN analyst and two-time championship winning crew chief Tim Brewer reported from ESPN’s DISH Tech Center.  

About NASCAR on ESPN:

ESPN and ESPN on ABC will have comprehensive, multi-platform coverage featuring telecasts of the final 17 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup races including the 10-race "Chase for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup" championship on ESPN on ABC. Additionally, ESPN2 is the home of the NASCAR Busch Series all season. For the first time in the history of televised motorsports, all programming will be produced totally in High Definition. ESPN’s comprehensive, multimedia NASCAR coverage will extend to ESPN.com, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Deportes Radio, SportsCenter, ESPN The Magazine, ESPN Classic, ESPNEWS, ESPNRadio, ESPN360.com and ESPN International, among other ESPN platforms. ESPN aired 262 NASCAR Cup Races over a 20-year period starting in 1981. The network's award-winning, live flag-to-flag coverage on ESPN was honored with 17 Sports Emmy Awards, as well as many industry honors. It is widely credited for helping to popularize the sport nationwide. NASCAR races have appeared on ABC for decades, beginning with broadcasts on the award-winning Wide World of Sports program in the 1960s.