I think you're going to have a lot of cautions, ... and not all because of the racetrack, [but also] because the guys racing so close in the Chase right now don't want to give an inch.

It's ungodly, I think, the pressure we get as drivers, not only from our sponsors but our car owners. I think the Chase last year, people recognized how much recognition the top 10 guys got by being a part of the Chase. Every sponsor wants to be a part of it, every driver, every team, but there are only so many pieces of the pie.

I noticed a lot of guys were not slamming into each other. Everybody was nudging a little bit until we got to those no-zones.

We had a lot of contact tonight, but you know what? I'm not going to hang my head. These guys worked their butts off all year long but we didn't make the Chase. The world's not over with. The main thing is that we need to go and win a race. I think that would be good for all the guys.

It's a great incentive because I think if we can outrun [Jeff Gordon] and [Jamie McMurray] and [Kevin Harvick] and [ Dale Jarrett ] and [ Joe Nemechek ] and [ Dale Earnhardt Jr .]. The list can go on and on for great race teams we have to out-run for 11th,

I think it's up to the drivers. We don't know where the line is until somebody crosses it. Until somebody gets called in for a pass-through penalty, nobody really knows where the line is. I'm sure we're going to push the envelope come (today).