Patrick is in the midst of decision-making regarding her future. As a sponsor’s dream she has options both in the IndyCar Series and in NASCAR.
Continuing to perform well could improve Patrick’s bargaining power, generate other possibilities or make her decision more clear. Every pundit seems to have a suggestion, but no one expects a decision soon. Patrick has plenty to weigh.
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“I have to make sure whatever I do is with a good team, and then after that you try and make sure everything possible is as good as it can be on the business side of things, because at the end of the day I’m a business and a brand and I have a job,” she said. Milwaukee-Journal Sentinel
Patrick has won an IndyCar Series race, and she has proven that she can contend in one of the two biggest auto races in the country.
Now she should take her pretty face, her powerful marketing machine and her considerable talent to NASCAR.
Now is the time for her to make the leap to NASCAR, the nation’s most popular form of racing.
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Because she has never been hotter. Not sexy hot — though she is that, too — but hot from a marketing and exposure standpoint.
The right opportunity, of course, would have to be with one of NASCAR’s top teams, presumably Hendrick Motorsports, Roush Fenway Racing, Joe Gibbs Racing or Richard Childress Racing.
She would likely have to start by running a full season in the Nationwide Series, something she says she would reluctantly do as long as it comes with the promise of a Cup ride.
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Can she do it? Can she make a smooth transition from open-wheel racing to stock cars and succeed in heavier, full-bodied machines? And can she adapt to close-quarters racing where contact is often the name of the game?
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Patrick has just one IndyCar victory and has had only moderate success, so her transition likely would be even more difficult.
By switching to NASCAR, Patrick will attract even more sponsors and generate even more exposure than she is currently getting. Win or lose, she would become an even bigger star in the sports world.
That could have a huge impact on the sport, not to mention the organization she lands with. If she runs a full season in the Nationwide Series, her mere presence would give fans a reason to watch NASCAR’s second-tier series.
Though she may face a long, tough road, moving to NASCAR is a no-lose proposition for Patrick.
She needs to make the move, and she needs to make it now. FOXSports.com
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