NASCAR Sprint Cup: Early-Season Surprises After Phoenix

With only two of 36 races now finished in the 2012 season, it may seem a bit early to seriously discuss surprises thus far, but 2012 has already proved to be interesting.

It proves difficult to deeply analyze individual performances based on just two races at two completely different tracks when a third race on another type of track is only one week away. Still, it is a bit shocking to see some names so far up or down in the standings.

In terms of the standings, here are some of the bigger surprises:

Mark Martin and Joey Logano are in seventh and eighth place overall, respectively, going to Las Vegas for race No. 3 of the season. Daytona is Daytona; anything can happen, but it was a bit shocking to see Martin follow up a solid finish at the superspeedway with a pole and a ninth-place finish at Phoenix's shorter track.

Also unexpected is Martin Truex Jr. sitting in sixth place and Bobby Labonte in 11th place. When is the last time Bobby Labonte was anywhere near a position to be a Chase contender? It doesn't matter how early it is in the season; this should be considered one of the larger surprises of the current NASCAR campaign.

On the opposite side of that, Hendrick Motorsports, as a team, has not looked quite as strong as many would have hoped. Though Dale Earnhardt Jr. has looked decent in both of his 2012 races, Jeff Gordon and Kasey Kahne have been disappointing, while Jimmie Johnson's 25-point penalty has eradicated him from contention in the points standings for at least a couple of weeks.

Also of note on the negative side of the surprise factor has been A.J. Allmendinger. Two races into the season, he is currently in 25th place. His No. 22 Dodge Charger has never looked strong—indeed, Aric Almirola, Allmendinger's replacement, has looked much better in the No. 43 Ford that he was hired to drive once Allmendinger replaced Kurt Busch in the No. 22.

Some of this must be taken with a grain of salt. The standings are sure to look much different after another two or three races. Still, it is important to pause and take note of the foundation that some drivers have laid for 2012. We'll see what happens in Las Vegas.