We are 1/6^th of the way to the Chase for the Sprint Cup and Kevin Harvick leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series point standings. Surprises grace the top of the points list and typical also rans such as Paul Menard and Scott Speed find themselves in the top 12 in points. Who is that in 13^th? “Junior!” Exclaims an excited fan. Heck, after last season anywhere above 30^th is a surprise. (Jimmie Johnson sat 13^th in points at this time last year....can JR Nation say championship?)

There will undoubtedly be a bit of shuffling over the next 22 races. There are a lot of laps to be run before the checkered flag waves at Richmond. I have no doubt there will be at least 3 or 4 cars battling for the final Chase spot.

Only 6 of the drivers currently in the top 12 qualified for the Chase last season. Of the drivers who did qualify for the Chase last year, Greg Biffle is the highest in this year’s points standings (3^rd), while Ryan Newman who finished 9^th a year ago, currently finds himself buried in the 29^th position.

It is way too early to hit the panic button. Clint Bowyer, Matt Kenseth, Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick and David Reutimann were all in the top 12 at this point last year and failed to qualify for the Chase. Let me remind you that Mark Martin, who was the series runner-up a year ago, was 34^th in points heading into Bristol in 2009.

There are a lot of talented young drivers that are looking to make their first Chase. Joey Logano has been impressive all year long and fellow Toyota driver David Reutimann aspires to make the final 12 for the first time in his career. Paul Menard and Scott Speed have been 2 of the biggest surprises thus far and it will be interesting to see if they will keep up this momentum or enter free fall. And while the Chase may be out of reach, I would not be surprised to see A.J. Allmendinger take the 43 car to victory lane this season.

On the other side of the coin, there are a lot of established drivers that aren't where we would expect them to be. Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Denny Hamlin and Ryan Newman to name a few. Will the experience of these teams prevail over the eagerness of the youth to prove themselves? I think it will be a mix of the two.

So let’s all take a deep breath, sit back, and watch this thing unfold. Let’s savor the excitement of who will be in and who will be out. As Jimmie Johnson tries to win 5 in a row, the competitiveness in the 10^th-15^th points range is evidence that parity does exist in NASCAR. The veterans will battle the youth, the underfunded will battle the power teams and when the dance is over, Paul Menard just might be Cinderella.