Plenty of intrigue awaits second half of 2007 season

	Kyle Busch lost by inches Saturday, but he has raced with a renewed focus since becoming a lame duck at Hendrick. Doug Benc/Getty Images for NASCAR

With the fireworks of Daytona in the rear-view mirror, NASCAR heads into the second half of the season. The plots thicken as 2007 has proved to be ever bit as intriguing as February promised. Here are 10 storylines to watch as the season heads into the stretch run.

1. Dream team: Can anyone stop the Hendrick Motorsports juggernaut? All four of its drivers have won in '07, giving the team 10 victories in 18 races. Jeff Gordon is dominating the points, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. will join the powerhouse in '08. Lost in the Hendrick hype, however, is that Joe Gibbs Racing, Richard Childress Racing, Roush Fenway Racing and even Dale Earnhardt Inc. are having strong seasons. All have multiple drivers in the top 12 in the standings.

2. Team schemes: -- In '07, the concept of team has taken on some interesting dynamics. Earnhardt and Kyle Busch are lame ducks, but also racing for a title. Denny Hamlin and Tony Stewart have a war of words after a team crash, while Jamie McMurray gives his teammates credit for his victory in the Pepsi 400. Even close friends Gordon and Jimmie Johnson, who seem to flourish because they are on the same team, rip each other in the media after a game of cat-and-mouse at the end of a race.

3. Tomorrow today: -- Though several of the questions from the beginning of the season are unresolved, the Car of Tomorrow is here to stay. While many are still unhappy with it, most teams have stopped complaining and started working on improving their version of NASCAR's new template. Of course, questions continue to pop up -- such as does the CoT mean the end of bump drafting on superspeedways?