Richmond qualifying: Gordon on pole

The Hendrick Motorsports star powered his Chevrolet around the three-quarter mile oval in 21.617 seconds to grab his sixth pole of the season, but it wasn't all plain sailing for the standings leader, who won this race at the corresponding fixture last September.

"We threw a lot of things at this car today," Gordon said. "We changed springs and shocks. Right now we have a lot of confidence going as far as communication between all of us.

"Once we get this type of momentum going on your side, it's tough to break it," he added. "The last few races have been a combination of us having good race cars and some luck. Those two can be a great combination."

Penske South Racing's Rusty Wallace will start outside of Gordon on the front row in his Ford, with Sterling Marlin again leading the Dodge charge, posting the third fastest time in qualifying.

Jeff Burton just pipped his big brother Ward to finish fourth fastest, but the elder sibling, who won last time out at Darlington, will start right behind him in fifth. Reigning Winston Cup title holder Bobby Labonte rounds out the top six for Saturday's race.

For full qualifying results click here.