1. (3) 17-Matt Kenseth, Ford: Kenseth appears even stronger than he did in 2003, when he ran away with the Nextel (Winston) Cup championship.
2. (1) 9-Kasey Kahne, Dodge: The top four drivers are a step ahead of the competition, but within them, they are practically performing equally. Kahne lost the top spot after finishing 6th at Phoenix.
3. (2) 48-Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet: Johnson may not lead as many laps as Stewart, Kahne, and Kenseth, but he has been just as consistent.
4. (4) 20-Tony Stewart, Chevrolet: Stewart is still searching for his first Nextel Cup win at Talladega.
5. (7) 29-Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet: Harvick is officially 'in the zone'.
6. (5) 6-Mark Martin, Ford: Martin was one of four Roush Racing drivers that didn't have enough fuel to make it to the end of the race at Phoenix.
7. (9) 24-Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet: Don't anticipate Gordon to be just average at Talladega (like he was at Texas and Phoenix).
8. (6) 5-Kyle Busch, Chevrolet: Settle down!
9. (8) 8-Dale Earnhardt Jr, Chevrolet: After a substandard weekend in Phoenix, Talladega is the ideal place for Earnhardt Jr to recover.
10. (11) 31-Jeff Burton, Chevrolet: If it weren't for his misfortunes at Atlanta and Martinsville, Burton could likely be in the top five in the Nextel Cup standings.
11. (10) 42-Casey Mears, Dodge: After a rock-solid start to the season, Mears' performance has really tapered off over the last month.
12. (NR) 07-Clint Bowyer, Chevrolet: Bowyer rebounded well Saturday night at Phoenix after he was robbed of a top five in the Busch Series race on Friday.
13. (NR) 99-Carl Edwards, Ford: Could his fourth place finish at Phoenix be an indication that things are finally turning around for Edwards?
14. (14) 88-Dale Jarrett, Ford: After eight races, Jarrett has yet to finish outside of the top 20.
15. (12) 11-Denny Hamlin, Chevrolet: I'm sure Hamlin would prefer to forget all about his weekend in Phoenix.
16. (NR) 43-Bobby Labonte, Dodge: After finishing in the top ten in three out of the last four races, it's safe to say that Labonte knew what he was doing when he joined Petty Enterprises.
