All According to Plan: NASCAR and the Fantastic Start to the 2011 Season

Kansas wasn’t supposed to be this exciting.

A typical intermediate track, Kansas was destined to be a snoozefest until race-winner Brad

Keselowski jumped off-script.

Just like the Indianapolis 500 and STP 300, racing finishes are not as predictable as they used to be. Sunday personified the continuing theme of the 2011 season and that’s one of...

Surprise!

You just can’t ask for more.

We’ve had it all: Unexpected winners, a resurgent Dale Earnhardt Jr., have at it boys, and a renewed sense of parity in the NASCAR paddock.

It’s not until the checkered flag of over half the races that we’ve deciphered who was going to win. NASCAR has a great product going right now.

With Keselowski breaking through at Kansas, the Sprint Cup Series now has nine different winners in the first 13 races, the most since 2003. And with names like Earnhardt, Stewart, Martin and Hamlin all winless thus far, that list will only grow.

Just one driver has three wins (Kevin Harvick) while only pair of teams have two wins.

It all started with the Chase for the Championship’s new emphasis on winning. The sanctioning body’s new rules have changed the perception of what it means to go points racing in the modern NASCAR. Wins have truly become a commodity, just as NASCAR intended back in February with Brian France’s state of the sport address.

The Car of Tomorrow is finally starting to live up to expectation, delivering exciting racing and even more exciting finishes. It’s a far cry from the winged car that Kyle Busch said, “sucks.”

Dale Earnhardt Jr. has done everything but win in 2011. He won the pole for the season opening Daytona 500, led laps, lost races on fuel mileage and has been one of the most consistent forces in the garage.

He currently sits third in points, just one mark out of second-place. The last time Earnhardt was this high in the standings this late in the season was after the fall Pocono race in 2008.

Even more thrilling for the NASCAR faithful is the struggles of five-time defending champion Jimmie Johnson. Johnson finished sixth on Sunday and is currently resting second in points.

And yet, Johnson is the first to admit that something is just not right.

His only win of the season came at the ultra-unpredictable Talladega and has garnered top tens largely on the prowess of crew chief Chad Knaus. But don’t sleep on Five-time, they’ll figure it out by the Chase.

They always do.

This brings us to Kevin Harvick, the most-optimistic favorite to unseat Johnson from his throne in November. Just how incredible (and lucky) has this guy been over the past two seasons? Could this be the year that the No. 29 car (and its rich history) finally wins the Sprint Cup championship? He was battle-tested by the 2010 season and that experience could prove to be invaluable by Chicagoland and the playoffs.

The 2011 season has crafted so many plots and characters, something for everyone. With football and basketball facing the potential of major work stoppages, Americans will be looking for things to watch in the fall. NASCAR and their television partners will be more than accommodating but will the fans come?

The answer is yes as long the excitement keeps building.

Stick-and-ball sports are out.

NASCAR’s back in.