Danica Patrick can expect some stiff competition from her new NASCAR Sprint Cup series boss when she takes the green flag at Daytona International Speedway on February 25 in the DRIVE4COPD 300 NASCAR Nationwide Series race. Patrick’s NASCAR Sprint Cup boss, Tony Stewart, is also entered in the race that will mark her first start as a full-time NASCAR driver.
Patrick and Stewart, along with Stewart-Haas Racing teammate Ryan Newman, hosted a breakfast Monday to kick off the NASCAR Media Tour hosted by Charlotte Motor Speedway and talked about their expectations for the 2012 season. Patrick returned to join her fellow Nationwide drivers on Tuesday night as they entertained media members with a game show competition before breaking for interviews.
Stewart has won the last four NASCAR Nationwide season openers at Daytona and hopes to add a fifth-straight victory next month. He will attempt to win his seventh NASCAR Nationwide Series race in the No. 33 Oreo 100th Anniversary Chevrolet fielded by Richard Childress Racing.
Patrick, who will drive the full Nationwide series for JR Motorsports, finished 14th in her Nationwide debut in the DRIVE4COPD 300 last year at the Florida track.
Although the two will compete in the Nationwide race, the next day the duo will be teammates when Patrick is expected to make her first Sprint Cup series start for Stewart-Haas Racing in the Daytona 500. Her car is not locked into the field, however, so she will need to qualify her way in or secure the necessary points by other means.
Patrick said Monday that her main focus in on the Nationwide series because she believes her best preparation for Cup is the Nationwide races. She will be a strong contender for Nationwide Rookie of the Year.
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