Pistone: Early NASCAR surprises - Four score: Early NASCAR surprises

Two races does not a season make but there are several drivers who have to like the way the 2011 Sprint Cup Series campaign has started.
After the two weeks of preparation for the Daytona 500 and last week’s jaunt west to Phoenix, some surprises not named Bayne have broken out in the early going including this quartet:
Bobby Labonte
There was some head scratching after JTG Daugherty Racing named the veteran Labonte to replace Marcos Ambrose when he bolted for Richard Petty Motorsports. After all Labonte had not been competitive in recent years and spent the bulk of 2010 with the underfunded TRG Motorsports team which was on the “Start and Park” plan more often than not. But the former series champion was not ready for the scrap heap and has made the most of his opportunity behind the wheel of the No. 47 Toyota. He was in position to win the Daytona 500 and still able to score an impressive fourth place finish. Last week in Phoenix was more of a challenge but his 21st place run kept Labonte inside the Top 10 in the standings and has given JTG Daugherty a welcome shot of confidence the first month of the season.
A.J. Allmendinger

After the way he ended last season maybe there shouldn’t be much surprise about Allmendinger’s start in 2011. The RPM driver finds himself only eleven points behind Kyle Busch for the Sprint Cup Series lead and has driven the No. 43 Ford to finished of 11th and 9th respectively at Daytona and Phoenix. “The pieces are there for this team to contend for wins and yes a Chase berth,” said Allmendinger who signed a contract extension to stay in the Petty stable last year. “I knew what happened at the end of last year wasn’t a fluke by any means and that we’d come back strong when the new season started.” With teammate Ambrose struggling Allmendinger is the flagship of the new RPM.
Juan Pablo Montoya
The JPM of 2009 appears to be back and focused on making a return trip to the Chase. Montoya was also in the mix at the end of 500 and settled for a sixth place finish. While his day was mediocre in Phoenix with a 19th for his effort, Montoya sees a difference already this season compared to the struggles of a year ago. If you look at our numbers last year, all of our averages were really good,” he said. “Our averages were way over some people who made the Chase,” Montoya said of 2010 “but when you have seven or eight DNFs, how many points did you give away? We’ve got to run good when we can run good and when we don’t, make sure we bring the car home. We’ve got to finish races for the points.” Next up for Montoya is a return to Las Vegas Motor Speedway this weekend where he and teammate Jamie McMurray had their controversial tangle a year ago.
Paul Menard
The concerns about whether adding a four team to the Richard Childress Racing stable would hurt the organization’s overall effort haven’t shown in Menard’s performance so far. In his first year with RCR Menard has been nearly better than all four of his established teammates Kevin Harvick, Jeff Burton and Clint Bowyer. He had one of the strongest cars in Daytona and was coveted drafting partner all through Speedweeks. The No. 27 Chevrolet notched a ninth place finish in the 500. Phoenix wasn’t as impressive but Menard was able to escape the day’s early accident – more than his three teammates could say – and eventually put a 19th place run on the board helping him stay inside the top twelve in the standings. “We have great equipment and Paul’s getting comfortable with the new environment,” said crew chief Slugger Labbe , who worked with Menard last year at RPM. “The more time we’re together at the track and working together as a team the better we’re going to be.