Justin Allgaier, Brad Keselowski Ride Momentum to Nashville

Carl Edwards may be at the top of the heap in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, but he doesn't have to look far to notice the Dodges of Justin Allgaier and Brad Keselowski.

The strong performances of the Penske drivers come as they campaign under a Dodge nameplate that has significantly cut back on the number of teams to which it provides factory financial support to in all three of NASCAR's top series.

In fact, Penske is the only Dodge operation racing in both the Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series with factory support -- a fact that most would find to be a disadvantage in an era where teams from the same manufacturer commonly share technical data.

Not so, if you ask team owner Roger Penske.

"I don't feel that I'm at a disadvantage. I think that we're at an advantage quite honestly," Penske said two weeks ago.

Penske was talking at Bristol Motor Speedway after the Nationwide Series' last race, one that saw the 23-year-old Algaier, driver of the No. 22 Discount Tire Dodge, narrowly edge Keselowski, driver of the No. 12 Verizon Dodge, for his first career NASCAR win.

"They're doing everything they can to help us from an aerodynamic standpoint, engine development standpoint, supporting our drivers and it's great for the brand. I think we're in the best spot," Penske said.

It's hard not to argue with that logic as just 26 (Keselowski) and 31 points (Allgaier) separate the Penske machines from Edwards' Ford in the point standings. And thanks to the 1-2 finish at Bristol, the Dodge outfit is rolling with momentum as the series arrives at Nashville SuperSpeedway for Saturday night's Nashville 300.

The Bristol run for Penske's drivers was by no means a surprise, rather a continuation of what has been a good season for both. Each are averaging a fifth-place finish in the season's first four races.

"We are really starting to gel and I think we are only going to continue to get stronger," Keselowski said.

It's a good time for the Penske group to head to Nashville for the Easter weekend race. Keselowski has scored a win in three of the last 10 races on concrete tracks -- Nashville features a 1.5-mile D-shaped layout paved entirely with concrete -- and both are among just five drivers who have completed every lap in the young season.

Despite the fact that the competition will take on a bit of a different face with the race being a stand-alone event outside of the Cup series' shadow, Allgaier predicts he and teammate Keselowski will have just as tough of a time staying up front.

"I've always found that when you go into the 'stand-alone' races where there aren't as many Cup guys, the competition is really, really intense," Allgaier said. "The guys that you're racing with on a weekly basis really seem to step it up."

Based on how the Penske team has been running early in this season, the competition will need to step it up at Nashville.