NASCAR racing brings out the best in competitors on the race track. It's just that sometimes it brings out the worst, too (see Kurt Busch taking aim at Jimmy Spencer; Ward Burton gunning for Jimmie Johnson at New Hampshire; any number of drivers chasing after the guy who 20 laps earlier punted them into the wall).

But settling scores and holding grudges aren't top priorities this weekend. Racing at Talladega Superspeedway means drafting. And drafting means finding the fast cars on the race track and hooking up with them.

This weekend, if Ward Burton's looking to get to the front and Jimmie Johnson's the ticket, there'll be no hesitation on his part to tag along for the ride.

Even Johnson, who has had run-ins with Robby Gordon in the past, wouldn't hesitate to hook up with the No. 31 Chevrolet if it was the fastest car around at the time.

That's the name of the game at this Alabama superspeedway. It doesn't matter who it is or what they've done -- all that matters is how fast they are.

"Yeah, we all use each other out there," Johnson said. "It doesn't matter who or what it is. It's what can you do for me now? And then when you've got your opportunity, you've got to do something with it."

Over the years, NASCAR has sifted through a bunch of rules changes at Talladega, but one things has always remained: It takes teamwork to make it to the front and at the superspeedways teammates are defined by the horsepower under the hood, not the owner of the car.

"You're blind to everything else," Jeff Gordon said. "All you worry about is who can help you and how you can get to the front."

Racing at 'Dega means fighting through the packs, finding holes where most people wouldn't think one exists. And to effectively manage the situation, you need friends.

"I would explain it like getting on a two or three-lane highway and you get at the rear of the pack and have cars in every lane set their cruise on 55 miles and hour," Elliott Sadler said. "Have 20 cars in front of you and you set your car at 60 miles an hour and then have to not hit the brake and see if you can figure out your way to get through there to the front without hitting anybody and have only a couple of miles to do it. That's what Talladega is like."

If you hook up in a line, though, you're not going 60 anymore. You make the lead car faster; the lead car pulls you along and you're faster. That's why the draft is so important.

	Junior, front, and Waltrip frequently team up at Talladega.

"You need to have a lot of help to have a good run at Talladega," Jeff Green said. "You're racing all day with guys who are going three and four wide, and you need help to get around these guys. The draft is important to everyone, and getting hooked up with someone late in the race is important in getting you to the front."

Kurt Busch has made some friends in the NASCAR garage, evidenced by the support that did come out for him after his altercation with Jimmy Spencer. Busch has also turned some folks off -- you can count Todd Bodine, Kevin Harvick and, of course, Spencer among that crew.

But Busch is going to have a rocket on Sunday. You can count on that. And you can count on something else. If the difference between winning and not having a chance to win means hooking up with the 97 Ford, any one of his haters will be game for the ride.

"You'll go with just about anybody," Dale Jarrett said, "so long as you think you can trust them and think they'll help you get to the front."

The buddy system isn't necessarily as friendly as it sounds, though. You can leave a car just as soon as you get behind it -- or you can tell a guy you're going to break out of one line with him and form another only to let him get out and leave him hanging, headed backward to the back of the pack.

Surely, scores are settled.

"It's all about what you can do for me," Mark Martin said.

That's one reason Dale Earnhardt Jr. has been so dominant at Talladega, lately. Outside of the fact that he understands how to work the air and is pushing some serious power, he has got teammate Michael Waltrip and Tony Stewart who he knows will run with him and won't sell him out.

It's the rest of the field that has to watch their backs.

"You know that the No. 8 (Junior) and the No. 15 (Waltrip) are going to end up in the front," Johnson said. "The problem is passing the lead car. That's the hardest position to make. Third to second is easy. Second to first is the hardest one.

"So I've been very content in following the No. 8 and the No. 15, but I find myself sitting in second without an opportunity to pass. So if you're deep in the pack and those guys are in front of you, you know you're going to get to the front. But as you start getting closer and you have an opportunity, you need to take it because you might just be building a coffin for yourself in settling for second."

Rupen Fofaria is a freelance writer living in Chicago and a regular contributor to ESPN.com. He can be reached at rfofaria@espnspecial.com.