1on1: Rick Hendrick

CONCORD, N.C. -- Last Sunday's Cup Series race at Dover belonged, in the end, to the Fords from Roush Fenway Racing that finished first, second and third.

But the boys from Hendrick Motorsports were not far behind, and led by two-time defending champion Jimmie Johnson remain very much in contention in the 2008 Chase to the Sprint Cup championship. Rick Hendrick spent a few minutes to talk with NASCAR.COM about a variety of topics Tuesday during Cup testing at Lowe's Motor Speedway.

Q: What was it like for you, watching driver Greg Biffle lead a 1-2-3 finish for Roush Fenway Racing to the checkered flag last Sunday at Dover?

Hendrick: To be honest with you, I became a race fan. They were racing so hard. I watched it from that standpoint. But I also thought if those were my guys, I'd probably be saying, 'Hey, be careful. Be careful.' They went at it really hard. I thought they might end up getting together and then we were going to have a real good day.

Q: Could you imagine a scenario where you would have to tell a guy to back off to let one of your other guys win, maybe if it were, for instance, to win a championship at the very end of a year?

Hendrick: The most I've ever said to one of our guys is, 'Hey, look at the big picture.' And they know what's at stake. We talk about it all the time. When it's all said and done, we've got to keep the unit together and keep everybody working on the same page. But you know, you're not going to tell a guy he's got to pull over or anything like that. You're just going to remind them to look at the big picture and then let their conscience be the guide.

Q: Could you talk about how you ended up putting Brad Keselowski in one of your Cup cars for two races later this season, beginning with the Oct. race at Lowe's Motor Speedway (read more)?

Hendrick: Dale [Earnhardt Jr.] kept talking about [Brad] and his talent. But I'll tell you when he really opened my eyes: I watched him in a number of Nationwide races and he did an extremely good job. But the job he did in Charlotte, when he was going at it with [Kyle] Busch and Denny Hamlin and they weren't intimidating him at all, was especially impressive. On a restart with 10 to go or 20 to go, to get in there and really dig and take it from a veteran -- to not give up anything but at the same time not be reckless or dangerous -- that impressed me.

So he's got the talent. He's competitive and he's got the desire. Then when I sat down with him and just listened to the maturity in his voice and how calculating he is, I realized he knows exactly what he wants. He's very driven but very professional about it. I have a tremendous amount of respect for people like that. So to me, he had the whole package. (Continued)