Ricky Craven gouged his way underneath Kurt Busch. They touched, banged and -- like virtual mirror images -- crossed the finish line door to door.

That was the scene at Darlington earlier this year when Craven beat Busch by two thousandths of a second. Basically the width of a Wheaties flake. It was the closest finish in NASCAR history and a prime illustration of where the sport is today.

Parity has indeed arrived in Winston Cup racing.

Nine events into 2003, there were nine different winners. Now with 16 races completed there have been 13 faces in Victory Lane, just six short of the season record set in 2001.

The effects of today's competitive balance are broad. But simply put, more drivers are winning, fewer are dominant, and perennial winners are being held at bay. Just ask 54-time winner Rusty Wallace, who is in the midst of a career-worst 78-race winless streak.

	Kurt Busch is the series leader with three victories.

Today's equality is in stark contrast to the sport's early years. During the first decade of the modern era (1972-1981), there were an average of 7.9 winners per season. In that stretch, 1980 was the only year where 10 different drivers claimed victory.

Gradually the number of winners per season increased. Nonetheless, before 2000, the most in a single season was 14, which was achieved three times.

However, in the last three years, the fewest number of winners per season has been 14 (2000). Last year there were 18, and in 2001 there was a record-high 19 different winners.

There are several factors that have contributed to the apparent transformation. Tighter regulations, including the single-engine and common-template rules, have erased much of the gray area and limited the possibilities of select teams gaining an advantage.

If a team does gain an advantage, it's usually short-lived. Changing tire compounds from season to season has left teams off balance and effectively shifted the power balance. This move has rendered many notes and set-ups useless and forced teams to adapt from year to year.

This has seemingly affected veterans more than the young guns. Both Dale Jarrett and Jeff Burton have admitted that there have been times during the past three seasons when their resistance to change and failure to adapt to the new generation tire has hurt them.

Conversely, young drivers have benefited from their inexperience. They have few habits at all, and therefore adjustment isn't necessary, which may partially explain why there have been 14 first-time winners since the beginning of the 2000 season. Surprisingly, many have been rookies.

In 1999, Tony Stewart became the first Winston Cup rookie to win since Davey Allison in 1987. Since '99, not a season has gone by without a rookie victory. In fact, there are very few rookies who haven't won. Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Matt Kenseth combined for three wins in 2000. In 2001, Kevin Harvick tallied twice. Last year Ryan Newman, Jamie McMurray and Jimmie Johnson set a new standard with a total of five rookie victories. Johnson won three times, tying Stewart's rookie record.

But tires aren't the only reason why the young stars have excelled. The marketing machine that propels the NASCAR monster has placed an emphasis on youth. Consequently, the days of paying dues are over. Rookies are immediately placed in top-notch equipment -- translation: fast racecars -- before the yellow rookie stripe disappears from their rear bumper. In past eras this was unheard of.

Another key factor in the balancing of NASCAR's competitive field is an open flow of information. Today, with free agency allowing personnel to move form organization to organization, individual team secrets are difficult to keep.

There are various explanations why parity has arrived; the question many people are wondering now is whether it's good for the sport. Is it better to have 10 dominant teams or 30 cars that can win on any given Sunday?

Poll NASCAR Nation and you'll get a range of answers. None are wrong or right. But consider the positives. There is certainly more suspense than ever, and that translates to entertainment, which in turn leads to greater popularity.

Parity has also broadened the fan base. Fans have begun to support a wider spectrum of drivers. It's not just Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Tony Stewart's NASCAR anymore.

Mike Massaro covers NASCAR for ESPN and ESPN.com.