Who cares who the frontrunner is in February 07?
This forum obviously does based on the number of threads about it.
Also, the big money donors do. Each of them obviously wants to back the eventual winner, since there's little to gain by backing a loser.
The bets are being placed now, not after the starting gate opens and votes are counted.
The perceived frontrunner also garners the most media coverage.
There are a lot of reasons why people care now. If you wait to care, it won't matter.