Three Sprint Cup surprises shouldn't have been

Matt Kenseth was washed up, past his prime and in the process of falling behind Carl Edwards, Greg Biffle and even young David Ragan at Roush Fenway Racing.

Jeff Gordon was merging into the twilight of his career, fading into oblivion with the rest of NASCAR's also-rans and hangers-on. For whatever reason — his new baby girl, one too many hard crashes — Gordon just didn't have the desire to push the button anymore and was content riding out his fabulous career.