Tony Stewart Leads as NASCAR Sprint Cup Points Turn Upside Down After Week Three

After the 14th Annual Kobalt Tools 400 Las Vegas Motor Speedway , the points turned upside down once more as the settling continues to take place in NASCAR new points system. The news will shake out eventually, but continue to have drivers tied for several positions, while other driver fight to remain relevant at the beginning of 2011, while still others are coming out of relative obscurity to claim a position at the top.

Last weeks points leader Kyle Busch fell from the top to 14th after trouble this weekend at Las Vegas. Kurt Busch's ninth place finish not only let him hold on to his second, but now ties him for the points lead with Tony Stewart who continues to run up front although second this week at Las Vegas was disappointing after his dominant run for most of the race.

AJ Allmendinger adds to the resurgence of Richard Petty Motor Sports. His teammate Marcos Ambrose brought home a fourth place finish this week, while 'The Dinger's'19th place finish at Las Vegas leaves him ninth in this weeks NASCAR Sprint Cup points standings. Jimmie Johnson's bad luck continued. His 16th place finish allowed him to hold on to 12th in the standing, but he slipped further behind first place. Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s top ten finish vaulted him to tenth in this week's standings. Kevin Harvick continued his climb from the basement. His seventeenth place finish moved him up to 20th in this weeks points.

Paul Menard continues to show he has what it takes to run in NASCAR Sprint Cup. His top 12 finish in the Kobalt Tools 500 left him in sixth place in the standings just 17 points behind leader Tony Stewart. After rating him poorly in the past, this writer is humble enough to admit, Menard is showing signs of patience and maturity as well as making the most out of his new alliance with Richard Childress Racing. We just might see a win out of this driver this season.

Check below to see where your favorite driver sits in the week three NASCAR Sprint Cup Point Standings.

Pos___Driver____________BP___Points__-Ldr
1_____Tony Stewart________3_____113____0
2_____Kurt Busch_________3_____113____0
3_____Carl Edwards_______5_____106____-7
4_____Juan Pablo Montoya__2_____106____-7
5_____Ryan Newma _______3_____103___-10
6_____Paul Menard________2______96___-17
7_____Martin Truex Jr.______2______95___-18
8_____Denny Hamlin______ 2______95___-18
9_____A J Allmendinger____1______94___-19
10____Dale Earnhardt Jr.___1______91___-22
11____Mark Martin________0______91____-22
12____Jimmie Johnson____1______87___-26
13____Kasey Kahne_______0______87___-26
14____Kyle Busch________2____86_____-27
15____Bobby Labonte_____1____84_____-29
16____Matt Kenseth_______2___ 77_____-36
17____Marcos Ambrose____1____76_____-37
18____Clint Bowyer_______ 2_____75____-38
19____Jeff Gordon________7____74____ -39
20____Kevin Harvick_______2____71_____-42
21____David Gilliland______0____70_____-43
22____Bill Elliott__________0____67_____-46
23____Brad Keselowski_____1____63_____-50
24____Brian Vickers________0____61____-52
25____David Reutimann_____1____61____-52
26____David Ragan_________1___61_____-52
27____Robby Gordon_______1____54_____-59
28____Regan Smith_________1____53____-60
29____Jamie McMurray______1___53_____-60
30____Joey Logano_________0____53____-60
31____Greg Biffle__________0____50_____-63
32____Jeff Burton__________1____50_____-63
33____Casey Mears_________0____45____-68
34____Andy Lally #________1____37______-76
35____Dave Blaney________2_____32____-81
36____Terry Labonte_______1____30_____-83
37____Tony Raines________0_____28____-85
38____J J Yeley___________0____12____-101
39____Michael McDowell___1_____7_____-106
40____Michael Waltrip______0____4_____-109
41____Brian Keselowski_____0____3_____-110

BPts - Bonus Points, -Ldr = Points behind Leader