As the Sprint Cup Series crests the midpoint of the season, the Chase picture is becoming clearer by the week. To this point, as it has been since the inception of the Chase, there are a few drivers who look poised to make a title run.

Kevin Harvick, Denny Hamlin and, of course, Jimmie Johnson all look like the ones to beat come Chase time.

Johnson and his Lowe’s team have looked shaky since the cars switched from the wing to the spoiler, but a win at Infineon stopped the bleeding in a big way.

The four-timer hasn’t looked as good or consistent as some of his competition, but don’t think for a second his team won’t be a factor in the final 10 races.

Every year Johnson has won his championships, there have been one or two drivers that everyone has looked at to dethrone him.

That brings me to Harvick and Hamlin.

Harvick represents the consistent guy who always comes up with a decent to good finish no matter how good or bad he’s running that particular day.

Think Tony Stewart in 2009. Everyone thought Stewart would take his new team and lead them to the promised land and past Johnson.

Stewart was incredibly consistent in the regular season, but in the Chase, when Martin and Johnson were battling it out, Stewart was forgettable.

Hamlin represents the guy who is on one of the hottest streaks of his career, and seems to be building toward something greater.

But another driver had a start to a season like this, and it didn’t turn out so well.

Think Kyle Busch in 2008. Busch had eight wins before the Chase started that year. Everyone and their brother watching the Cup series wanted to hand the younger Busch the trophy.

But in the Chase, while Johnson and Carl Edwards traded wins and paint on the way to Johnson’s historic third straight title, Busch fell flat on his face, and wound up a very distant 10th in points.

So, to everyone ready to crown either Hamlin or Harvick, take caution. Things are a long way from done.

Historically, those in the top 12 in points at this point in the season will likely stay there. But predicting the champion at this point is like predicting the lottery numbers.

There’s just no way to tell who will or won’t step up in the Chase. You can probably count on Johnson’s team to do so, but then again, can you really expect a team to be that good for a fifth year in a row?

If Hamlin hasn’t peaked too early, then maybe he is the guy to end Johnson’s streak. Call me a pessimist, but I don’t see him and his team keeping this up for the rest of the season.

Now, I say that knowing that every time I’ve made a prediction like this in the past, it’s been, almost, completely wrong.

But as the rest of the season unfolds, it’s up to Harvick, Hamlin and their respective teams to not fall into what Stewart or Busch and their teams fell into when they came up short.

And as for sleepers to make a run in the Chase? I’d take Busch. No one is talking about him as a contender, and his crew chief has a serious chip on his shoulder, proving to everyone he shouldn’t have been fired from Joe Gibbs Racing.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: No matter how things unfold, it’ll be fun to watch, especially in a season that has been unlike any other in recent memory.