Cross' Words: Darlington

"We've got to stop this. We keep giving them away week in and week out. Everyone will talk about how Hendrick [teams] won another race. This was our race."

Denny Hamlin took off the gloves after finishing second to Jeff Gordon on Sunday. It was Hamlin's fourth consecutive top-three finish in the Car of Tomorrow -- and his frustration with poor pit stops reached its boiling point.

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"If we lose by 20 or 30 points in the championship it's because we lost it on pit road," Hamlin lamented.

Hendrick drivers -- defending series champion Jimmie Johnson (four wins), Jeff Gordon (three) and Kyle Busch -- have won eight of 11 races, and they have swept the COT events. The team has spent a lot of time and money testing the COT and it's paying off. But aside from the financial commitment, Hendrick's front-runners aren't making mistakes.

Hamlin (and Chase contender Tony Stewart, too) know that the Joe Gibbs Racing stable has to answer the challenge of Hendrick's pit prowess.

"Their pit stops range from 12.50 [seconds] to 18.50," Hamlin said of his over-the-wall gang. "They're thinking about not making mistakes and end up making a mistake. ... I'm not going to bash my guys; they've helped me out a lot over the course of this year.

"But when you're in contention for these wins, it's all about not making mistakes."

Gordon's crew chief, Steve Letarte, made a late-race decision to stay on the track during the Lap 344 caution. Ironically, it was a yellow flag brought out by Hendrick teammate Casey Mears, who had engine trouble. Johnson pitted, while Gordon assumed point and held off the field during the final 18 laps.

It was a roll of the dice by the No. 24 team that paid off; the radiator was spewing steam and Letarte gambled that Gordon could make it to the finish with clean air to cool the engine.

If Hamlin's crew hadn't dropped the ball -- or the lug nut, as it were -- it may have been a different story. Hamlin had the lead on Lap 299, yielded to Johnson on Lap 300 and exited the pits in 15th on Lap 305 after a dropped lug nut. A common issue each week for many teams, but a crucial late-race mistake this week for Hamlin.

"We're not making those kinds of mistakes," Gordon said of the miscues that Hamlin's team is suffering through. "I can understand his frustration. They've been very strong. It's not going to be long before they're going to wind up [winning]."

Random ruminations after Darlington ...

Another good showing for Martin Truex Jr. (11th), his best finish in the COT and fifth top-15 in the past nine races. ... Sterling Marlin finished 13th, his best since an 11th at Charlotte last fall. ... Carl Edwards' fifth-place run was his first top-five of the year; he had 10 last season and 13 in 2005. ... Clint Bowyer led a season-best 16 laps, the most he's run on point in a race since Kansas (43) on Oct. 1, 2006. ... Bobby Labonte came home 19th, but his average finish in the past three COT races is a respectable 14.0. ... Who had 'Dega, Richmond and Darlington in the pool for three consecutive top-10 finishes for Ryan Newman? You're a winner! ... OK, Matt Kenseth -- starts 31st, finishes seventh? Nice work, for the umpteenth week in a row. (Continued)