Danica’s Road To NASCAR Appears Wide Open
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I admit I’ve been hard on Danica Patrick over the years. A large part of the reason was her tougher than nails attitude, trying to act like a rough man in a rough man’s world.
Let’s put it this way: when it comes to personality, her face would not be found next to the word in a dictionary.
And then there was her gratuitous use of her good looks and sexuality—nothing of which has anything to do with being a winning and successful race car driver. I mean, we never saw Richard Petty or the late Dale Earnhardt—men’s men if there ever was—posing near-naked in a pair of swim trunks, trying to sell a product or get a certain message across.
(And I won’t even go into the rumors that have been flying the last week that Patrick will appear nude—supposedly “tastefully,” though—in an upcoming issue of ESPN The Magazine, purportedly to compete with Sports Illustrated’s annual Swimsuit Issue. Yep, that’ll help her win a number of upcoming races).
I once said Patrick was all “flesh and flash,” nothing but a pretty face that had some marginal racing talent but not enough to make her a bonafide, competitive superstar. That line was picked up all over the world.
And now, with just one win under her belt in the IndyCar Series – a fuel-mileage win at that (I know, it sounds like I’m picking on her, but facts are facts) – it would appear that the pride and joy of Roscoe, Il., is finally going to attempt the big jump from open-wheel to stock car racing.
Various reports the past few days have Patrick aligning herself with Tony Stewart (with rumored help from Kevin Harvick and even possibly Dale Earnhardt Jr.), with an ambitious training program of sorts that would see her continue full-time in the Indy Racing League, while filling in her off-weekends with appearances in ARCA, Nationwide and Camping World Trucks series events.
Essentially, Patrick is preparing to serve her apprenticeship before deciding whether she’s cut out – let alone ready – to make the big jump all the way up to the Sprint Cup series.
While I’m not a big fan of drivers who race across multiple series in the same season – particularly those who could easily be seriously injured in their moonlighting gig, thus negating their full-time job – this is probably the best path for Patrick to take.
That could be why her contract renewal with Andretti Green Racing is taking so long. If I was majority team owner Michael Andretti, I’d want to be compensated or have some type of assurance that if Patrick gets hurt while chasing her NASCAR dream, he’s not going to be left holding the bag to his team’s investors and sponsors.
One report even had Patrick potentially seeing action following the Oct. 10 IRL season finale at Homestead, potentially in either an ARCA or Trucks race.
ARCA may be unlikely as its final race at Rockingham, N.C., is one day after the IRL season-ending race, leaving her virtually little or no time to practice or qualify.
Racing in the Trucks series might be a bit more doable, as there are five races after the conclusion of the IRL season: Martinsville, Talladega, Texas, Phoenix and Homestead.
And, given that Kevin Harvick Inc., may have an extra truck hanging around its shop for Patrick, that could very well be the best place for her to start.
If I was a betting man, and if she truly intends on making at least one appearance in a NASCAR-sanctioned event this year, I predict Patrick could make her debut Nov. 13 in her adopted hometown of Phoenix, and then possibly add a second event one week later during the season-ending (for all three major NASCAR series) Ford Championship weekend at Homestead Miami Speedway.
If she is still to race in 2009, she likely wouldn’t run at Martinsville because there’s little media draw (and I’m sure she would want to have as big a media splash as possible when she does make her NASCAR debut). Talladega is way too big and Texas is too fast. So, if she’s going to get a head start on 2010, it makes sense to see her race in Phoenix and/or Homestead.
I have to give Patrick credit where it’s due. She’s flirted with the idea of coming to NASCAR for so long that I, like many others, felt she was never serious about it, that she was using it as somewhat of a bargaining chip to get a better deal in the IRL or potentially somewhere else (like Formula One).
But now it appears she truly is serious. So, I’ll take back what I’ve said and welcome her to the NASCAR family. I truly do wish her the best of luck and hope her fellow drivers welcome her with open arms.
Well, at least until they get on the racetrack. Then, it’s every man – and now, woman – for himself or herself. I can hardly wait for the first time Patrick tangles with, say, Kyle Busch, and then goes looking for him to “discuss” things afterward along pit road or in the garage.
That’s a day I’m waiting for big time.
I believe she is making a good call by asking the advice of Tony, and starting with a few ARCA, Truck or NW races. If some of the other open wheelers had gone in slow, and used the seat time to learn, they may have stayed around longer.
I do believe Danica will find the larger, heavier, low down force, stock cars a little more difficult to drive; but I say give her a chance.
-Taglia
I think Danica is going to be miserable in Nascar. Not that she’ll be bad in the cars, but that she won’t find the atmosphere to her liking. There’ll be less of the coddling that she gets in Indy car now, people won’t treat her with kid gloves.
I used to defend Patrick’s ability to drive a race car, but Then I took the time to really think about it, and came to a different conclusion. She is at best a once in a while front runner who could win if everything goes her way in Indy Car. Well, on ovals anyway. She is, by her own admission not that great on road or street circuits. And I wonder why that is? After all she raced in the European training series, which is nothing but road and street circuits. So why isn’t she good on them?
In Nascar she’s going to have to unlearn everything she knows about racing the lighter Indy Cars and re-learn the stock car racing game. Especially learn that a stock car lacks the precision of her previous rides. I don’t think she will learn and will end up back in Indy Car permanently after a year or two.
The reason most Indy Car drivers fail in Nascar isn’t because of their ability to race, it’s their lack of understanding of racing a heavy front engine vehicle. Stewart, Newman, the Gordons. Montoya is a freak—he can race anything and be successful. You have guys like that. Danica isn’t one of them.
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