Joe Biden reportedly changed up his debate prep ahead of his rematch against Kamala Harris

Former Vice President Joe Biden might be the runaway favorite in the polls with 187 days left to go before the first 2020 primary, but there is more riding on his debate performance Wednesday night than might initially meet the eye. After Biden's debate in June, when he went head-to-head against California Sen. Kamala Harris over his busing record, New York magazine's Olivia Nuzzi tweeted that Biden's staff was "freaking out" about his unexpectedly poor performance, noting that her source close to the campaign said the former VP had refused to listen to his debate prep staff.

Ahead of the second debate of the election season, though, it would seem that Biden has doubled-down on committing to his preparations. "To try to make up for Biden's shortcomings last time, some of his prep sessions (though not exclusively) have been with smaller groups of advisers, with aides asking him what he thinks instead of over-prepping and jamming his head," reported Axios' Mike Allen on Wednesday.

Even despite his bruising exchange with Harris last time around, Biden is clearly seen by the other 19 debaters as the candidate to beat. While he was never mentioned by name at Tuesday night's debate, CNN's moderators "were used as stand-ins for some of the ideas he espouses," The Washington Post noted. Jeet Heer of The Nation agreed, tweeting that former Maryland Rep. John Delaney — who had a rather bruising night of his own — became the de facto stand-in for Biden.

It will soon be clear if the former vice president's work paid off. Biden will take the stage along with Harris and eight other presidential hopefuls on CNN at 8 p.m. ET.