The Joey Logano We Were Waiting For Has Arrived.

Finishes of 19th, 21st, and 24th to end the 2009 season were all the evidence one might have needed to be convinced that 2010 would be a struggle for the youngest full-time driver on the Sprint Cup circuit.

Sitting 8th in points with as many top tens as ‘09 chasers Carl Edwards, Jeff Gordon, Brian Vickers, Denny Hamlin, and Ryan Newman combined so far in 2010, one would have been wrong about the driver dubbed by Mark Martin as “Sliced Bread.”

Face it folks, Joey Logano is going to be good.

Last season was rough for the young man. After seven races, Logano sat 35th in the points. Only one driver who had qualified for all seven races was ranked lower than him. That was Aric Almirola, driving for the now defunct No. 8 team at EGR.

The learning curve looked incredibly steep. Driving with a championship caliber team, his first top ten didn’t come until the ninth race of the season at Talladega, where any driver at the right place at the right time can score a good finish.  Then part-timer Brad Keselowski won the race.

Over the next 27 races, Logano scored just six more top tens, very pedestrian numbers at first glance.

But top tens weren’t the primary goal for Logano and the No. 20 team. Improvement was the primary objective.

Mission accomplished.

Logano ended the season 20th in the points, improving 15 positions from his early standing. He also ended the season on a streak of seven races of 24th or better, which included two top fives and four top fifteens.

These aren’t Jimmie Johnson numbers, by any means, but they certainly aren’t bad for a 19-year-old racing with seasoned veterans like Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart and Mark Martin, just to name a few.

Besides, there is a simple explanation for why he didn’t have better results: he was brought along a little too early.

That’s not his fault by any means, nor the fault of Joe Gibbs Racing for that matter. When Stewart left JGR to begin his own ownership venture, Gibbs was left with an open ride and a young up and coming driver.

What better way to learn how to compete at the highest level than to actually race at the highest level?

Logano was thrown to the proverbial wolves and took his lumps. It’s obvious, though, that he’s better because of that experience.

We’ve seen it time and time again where young drivers are moved along too quickly and can’t handle the pressure and expectations. Casey Atwood is a prime example. Atwood was dubbed as a future star of the sport and got his chance racing for Ray Evernham.

Where is he now? Exactly.

In spite of early and understandable criticism for moving Logano along so quickly, it seems that the Gibbs organization has handled the young man the right way. Maybe we underestimated the kid’s character.

So far this season, Logano has improved a combined total of 51 positions from where he finished in each identical race last season. He almost scored his second top five in a row, but was beat to the line by a nose by Matt Kenseth at Las Vegas on Sunday.

Still, two solid top ten finishes in a row is a great way to start the season.

“I’m pretty pumped up,” Logano kept repeating on pit road after climbing out of his car after the Vegas race.

But again, the mantra for pretty much any opinion and prediction article right now is that it’s still early. The Sprint Cup circuit is heading to Atlanta this week, a track where, with two career starts, Logano currently has an average finish of 26th.

He finished 30th in this race a year ago.

“Next week’s probably gonna be the tough one, I’m assuming, going to Atlanta,” Logano admitted. “It was one of our tough tracks.”

Even so, Logano, given the strides he has made, should now be considered a legitimate threat next weekend. By extension, he should be considered as a threat to make the Chase.

The best part about the kid is that he doesn’t make many mistakes on the track. He finishes races. Now that he’s finishing races inside the top six, everyone should take notice.

“You know, the cool thing is, you keep running up front like this, get good top tens and top fives, eventually the wins are gonna come,” Logano said.

Right he is, and when the wins start coming, all the hype surrounding him when he entered the sport will be justified.

Then again, should we have ever doubted Mark Martin?