Things have been largely consistent in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series over the past two seasons with the first eight races of this season playing out largely like the 2014 Chase for the Championship.

The garage is still chasing Kevin Harvick and the No. 4 team while Hendrick Motorsports and its affiliates continue to control the gateway to Victory Lane. With that said, there have been some surprises.


Certainly the RCR Alliance of Richard Childress Racing, Furniture Row Racing, JTG Daugherty Racing and Germain Racing have made great strides this season.

Capitalizing on the unexpected playoff runs by Ryan Newman and AJ Allmendinger last season, the RCR Alliance continues to make strides towards the model established by the powerful Hendrick championship bloc.

And certainly, 13th place Danica Patrick constitutes as a surprise as well.

However, there have also been a few disappointments too. Long-time contenders and champions are quickly losing touch with the top of the grid and the next several weeks, starting this weekend at Richmond International Raceway and the Toyota Owners 500 may be their last chance to establish results before their seasons spiral out of control.

Here are four drivers that need to heat up with the impending summer months of the 2015 season and this weekend’s short track duel in Virginia.

Tony Stewart

Despite a sixth place finish on Sunday night in the Food City 500, Tony Stewart is still mired back in 28th in the championship standings.

The three-time Sprint Cup champion has an average finish of 26.8 through the first eight races and just doesn’t resemble the same driver that was fighting for championships as recently as three seasons ago prior to his two Sprint Car incidents -- neither of which likely needs to be rehashed.

All of this is just odd because Stewart, emotionally and physically, looked a lot like his old self during Speedweeks at Daytona. However, the results just haven’t manifested.

Even odder is that teammates Harvick, Patrick and Kurt Busch have all excelled to various degrees. "Smoke" is a notorious "summer starter" but is it too late for him to find the ingredients required to make a run at winning a race over the next 18 races?

Greg Biffle

At face value, Biffle isn’t that far off from where his No. 16 team was at the end of last season -- a campaign in which they made the Chase for the Championship and battled throughout the 10-race playoff despite an early elimination.

But Roush Fenway Racing as a whole is clearly considerably worse this season with the three cars 20th (Biffle), 24th (Ricky Stenhouse) and 27th (Trevor Bayne). So at the end of the day, it seems that Roush Fenway is only going to go as far as its senior driver will take them, refreshing given that Biffle does always seem to get the most out of his equipment, for better or worse.

Austin Dillon

In praising the RCR Alliance, the performance or lack thereof, from the No. 3 team must also be scrutinized. As a disclaimer, Austin Dillon has proven that he can perform at the highest levels based on his championships at every stop on the way to the Sprint Cup Series.

The expectations were realistically low in his rookie year with the assumption that 2015 was where the pieces were meant to come in place. Following the first eight races of the season, Dillon and crew chief Gil Martin are just a tick away from the top-10 because we certainly know the talent is there on both sides -- driver and engineering.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

Sunday night was very important for the two time NASCAR XFINITY Series champion as his third-place at Bristol Motor Speedway proved that he was more than capable of getting the job done when provided a track where results were more driver-based than engineering.

That’s also why this weekend, and yet another driver track in Richmond, is important in establishing forward momentum before the next intermediate speedway next weekend at Kansas Speedway.

FAVORITES

So with that said, here are three teams that have Richmond International Raceway figured out and should likely be in the mix to win on Saturday night in the Toyota Owners 400.

1.) Kevin Harvick

Wins: 3 | Top-10s: 17 | Average Finish: 11.04

It’s a case of rinse, lather and repeat as the defending Sprint Cup Series champions are going to be good everywhere the tour goes this season. And why shouldn't “Happy” be considered a favorite at the Virginia speed plant? More than the stats, Harvick just likes the feel of tracks like this and Phoenix, which should be enough to invoke fear in the rest of the garage right now.

2.) Joey Logano

Wins: 1 | Top-10s: 3 | Average Finish: 15.42

The artist formerly known as "Sliced Bread" is the defending winner of this race and should once again be a contender well throughout the evening. Logano has evolved into a complete driver since starting his tenure with Team Penske but these throttle-feathering, hard-turning short and flat tracks have always been the butter to on Logano's toast. Those skills have only been magnified during his partnership with crew chief Todd Gordon.

3.) Jeff Gordon

Wins: 2 | Top-10s: 28 | Average Finish: 13.59

The four-time Sprint Cup champion hasn’t won at the Virginia race track since 2000 but has never been far removed from the front in recent seasons. He has a four runner-up finishes here since 2010 including a pair in both races last year. Following a third place finish at Bristol, after falling two laps down due to a loose wheel, it appears that Gordon and crew chief Alan Gustafson again have a stout short track package.

ABOUT NASCAR FRONT PAGE