Cross' Words: Richmond (cont'd)

Six of one ...
Drivers with momentum heading to Darlington:

• Hendrick Motorsports -- Too Tough to Tame? Not for these guys, not in the COT:

• Denny Hamlin -- He's finished third in the past three COT races. Good bet for Victory Lane on Saturday night.

• Tony Stewart -- Three top-10s in the past six races, six in 10 starts. Where there's Smoke, there's fire.

• Matt Kenseth -- Another top-10. ... Did you know he has a series-leading 3,228 laps run on the lead lap?

• Dave Blaney -- Just missed Toyota's second top-10 finish; 11th at Richmond was his first top-15 since Sept. 24 at Dover (12th).

• J.J. Yeley -- Challenging Kenseth for Mr. Consistency title: 22.1 is Yeley's average starting and finishing positions.

Half a dozen of the other ...
And six drivers who need a jump start:

• Jeff Burton -- Back-to-back sub par showings, including his first last-place finish since Aug. 14, 2005, at Watkins Glen.

• Jamie McMurray -- Finished 41st at Richmond, by far his worst of the season. Let's call it a bump in the road. For now.

• David Stremme -- Has bobbed back and forth between top-15s and forgettable finishes during the past six races.

• Juan Montoya -- Add Johnny Sauter to the list of folks to whom JPM won't have to send a Christmas card.

• David Gilliland -- 2007 average finish at plate races: 6.0. Average finish in the other eight starts: 31.5.

• Dale Jarrett -- That TiVo thing is pretty cool, huh?

Feel the power
Three names you'll see in the Power Rankings' top 10 on Wednesday:

8. Kyle Busch -- Four top-10s in as many COT races. Yeah, he really hates these flying bricks ...

9. Clint Bowyer -- Ranks 10th in points, the lowest of the three RCR cars.

10. Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- Sits in the swing position -- 13 points out of 11th, 19 points from 13th.

The opinions expressed are solely of the writer.