One of the ‘big’ stories in the motorsports world in the last few days was the shocking revelation that Danica Patrick has signed with Andretti Racing and will remain in the IndyCar Series fulltime for the next three years.
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Danica Patrick (AP)
With her signing all the talk about her possible defection to NASCAR evaporated.
There was some speculation that Patrick was actually thinking about trading her open wheels for fenders. Even to the point of visiting a few NASCAR shops in the Charlotte area.
Well guess what. Just like the fable of the boy who cried wolf, Danica Patrick yelled loud enough to grab everyone’s attention…as it turned out for nothing at all.
Rewind to 2006 when her last contract was ended. Suddenly whispers began to be heard in the NASCAR garage; rumors that Danica Patrick might just sign with a NASCAR team. That time the rumors were fueled even more when Patrick’s father showed up in Chicagoland and was seen hanging around the Roush team. The whispers got a bit louder but quickly died away when Patrick decided the only defection she would make would be from Rahal to Andretti-Green Racing in the Indy Racing League.
No doubt her flirtation with NASCAR, or her alleged interest in it, caused some behind the scenes maneuvering on the part of the teams involved and even the open wheel sanctioning body, all of who saw the value in Patrick’s potential. And in the end no doubt got Danica Patrick a very sweet deal.
Was she ever serious about coming to NASCAR? Of course not. She used the fear of a NASCAR defection to open some IRL wallets; she got some zeros added to her paycheck along with some leverage for other perks. She signed and NASCAR was soon forgotten.
Fast-forward three years. Patrick’s contract is again up for renewal and suddenly the NASCAR rumors surface. Instead of sending her father this time however Patrick herself is seen, almost mysteriously it seems, visiting NASCAR shops while Tony Stewart is at the track singing her praises.
Again the IRL was undoubtedly scrambling behind the scenes to keep their highest-profile star in the open wheel fold. Their nervousness increased tenfold by the fact that the series is still losing ground to NASCAR’s popularity monster, despite the fact that the IndyCar Series has some of the best racing on the planet.
But let’s face it, the IRL’s TV partner is a network that doesn’t enjoy a wide distribution and the empty grandstands at their races make NASCAR’s worst attended race look like a Bristol Saturday night. Faced with the possibility of losing one of their greatest PR tools, you can bet Visa card limits were checked and secret Swiss bank accounts were tapped into. All to give whichever team the IRL chose the type of green that would make any Sports Illustrated swimsuit model sit up and take notice.
In the end the newly revamped Andretti Racing team won the bragging rights and re-signed Patrick. And again the NASCAR rumors fade into the distance.
So why would Danica have left her comfort zone to come to NASCAR? For the new challenges it would provide? Although she’s performed ok in IndyCar, she is far from mastering that series, so plenty of challenges still await. Could it have been for more money? With NASCAR teams shutting down, laying off people and other teams barely staying afloat, the kind of money Patrick would have tried to command just isn’t available.
The truth seems to be then that Patrick never had any intention of coming to NASCAR, instead again using it to increase her standing in the IRL world. In essence crying wolf and having the whole town run to the rescue. It seems she’s thumbed her nose at NASCAR. It’s almost like a geek in high school having the head cheerleader telling him he can take her to the prom, only to stand him up and laugh behind his back.
One has to wonder if the next time she cries ‘wolf’ if anyone will listen. Or to put it another way; fool us once, shame on you; fool us twice, shame on us.
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Comments
We'll wait & see. The slow tryout is still a possibility. It's a step at a time as other open wheel drivers have discovered. Go Danica 7 !
I like Danica but it seems like every time her contract is up in IRL she "threatens" to leave it. Not that there is anything wrong with that but that's what I think every time I hear Danica rumors of coming to NASCAR - it's that time again and she is working on getting a better deal. Good for her and it gives fans in NASCAR something to debate in a less than stimulating season. Everybody wins!
Danica needs to be a racer. Racers go after anything with wheels to prove themselves. Talk is cheap. I can't remember a single time where she has driven a heavy body stockcar. A little sportscar, but they are 2000 - 2500 lbs lighter. Show me the goods. A lot of what I read was her concern for her "brand", whatever that means. Since racing is secondary to entertainment, I don't suppose anything will change. I want racing, not prima donnas or divas.
i'm still hoping that she gets out and tries a truck or nationwide car. i believe that she will find out quickly what tough competition really is.
NASCAR already has a prima donna and his name is Jr.
NASCAR already has a prima donna and his name is Jr.
NA$CRAP is boring. They know they need her badly so they will keep trying even though she was always gonna stay in the IRL. Meanwhile, time to watch 'em go round and round and round. Remember don't touch any other cars and don't say anything bad about anybody else. Mind your manners...LMAO
there is no room for her in nascar anyway.She is a sub par driver anyway, there are plenty of young men to fill any empty spots.
Does anyone really care if she moves or not? I mean besides the media trying to make news and help her negotiate her contracts.
Nascar has more personalities than it needs. What it really needs is competition but I don`t see that coming any time soon. IROC style car, boring races, too many talking heads on tv,far to expensive to attend races. I`m afraid Nascars bubble has burst.
It's called negotiating folks and everyone fell for it hook, line & sinker!
She's an attraction, not a talent. She has looks, not skill. She has an image, not a personality. Who cares if she came to NASCAR and wasn't succesful. That criteria would fit 20-30 drivers now haven't got a snowball's chance in h*ll of winning consistently(once in a while yes. Even a blind squirrel finds the occasional nut!). Her whole act of coming to NASCAR is similar to how she's marketed as a sex kitten, yet shes MARRIED!). Diva Patrick and her husband must sit at their kitchen table and laugh their a*sses off as they count
(her)their cash!
personally i would rather watch ashley, britanny, and coutney force. the force girls actually do win races. lynn st. james is still the best female driver.
In another three years, Patrick will be 30 or 31 years old, and I can't see her coming to NASCAR then. I don't think she'll be a winner in IRL, for the next three years, either. Her primadonna act will be stale by then.
I'll say this for her: I've never seen Tony Stewart get so excited in the presence of a female, like he was when Patrick visited his shop. The only person who had him hanging his tongue out like that was Greg Zipadelli.
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