FONTANA, Calif. -- Tony Stewart has had a busy weekend even before starting today's NASCAR Nextel Cup race at California Speedway.

Stewart said he talked to Matt Kenseth about last week's incident at Daytona this weekend and spoke with Kyle Busch for about 90 minutes Friday night. Stewart was one of a few drivers who complained about Busch's aggressive driving at Daytona.

Stewart was upset with Kenseth at Daytona after Stewart nearly spun while running underneath Kenseth. Later, Stewart ran Kenseth down the track and into the grass. Kenseth spun back up the track and hit the turn-3 wall.

Stewart declined to reveal details of that conversation.

"What we talk about is between Matt and me," Stewart said.

Asked about the Daytona incidents, Stewart said: "If you want to talk about California, we have all the time in the world to talk to you. If you want to talk about last week, you can turn around and go somewhere else because I've learned my lesson about talking."

Stewart was critical of Busch's driving at Daytona, as were other competitors. Stewart said his meeting with Busch went "real good."

Busch said earlier this weekend that if drivers aren't happy with him, he'd like for them to talk to him instead of chastising him in the media. Stewart suggested that sometimes the driver in question can't expect that.

"I said I've never had a driver in this garage when I've asked them for some time to bend their ear for 10 minutes and asked some questions, I've never had a driver ever say, 'no, I don't have time for that,'" Stewart said.

Also, Ryan Newman said he and Jimmie Johnson have talked this week after trading barbs through the media. After Johnson won the Daytona 500, Newman questioned the legality of some of Johnson's winning cars. Johnson countered later in the week by insinuating that some of Newman's fuel-mileage victories in 2003 were suspicious.

"Everything I said got turned into being a Jimmie Johnson comment and there was never a Jimmie Johnson comment," said Newman, whose hauler is parked beside Johnson's in the garage. "It was about his crew chief and that's the bad thing about how everything went down Sunday evening at Daytona."

Different makes

Newman, Kurt Busch and Bobby Labonte each are driving Dodge Intrepids this weekend, while the rest of the Dodge field is in the Charger.

Dodge teams have struggled to make the Charger handle well in traffic since its debut last year. That's led Penske Racing South to go back to the 2004 Dodge. Labonte is doing it so Petty Enterprises can see which model works best. Teammate Kyle Petty is in a Charger.

A Dodge test session has yet to be scheduled after one at Kentucky Speedway was postponed because of poor weather a few weeks ago.

Taking it easy

Rookie Denny Hamlin was the only driver among the 43 not to practice during Saturday's final session.

Pit stops

Rookie Brent Sherman will use a backup car today after wrecking his primary car in practice. ... Newman debuts a new spotter this weekend. Danny Culler was Dale Earnhardt's spotter from 1996-2001.