Filed under: Motorsports
Danica Patrick switching to NASCAR, too?
Hot on the heels of Juan Pablo Montoya's decision to leave the bright lights of Formula 1 for the barbecue pits of NASCAR at the end of the 2006 season is a report that Danica Patrick's father and manager, T.J. Patrick, is currently in exploratory talks with some NASCAR teams for his daughter to join the NEXTEL Cup circuit as early as next season.Patrick's IRL contract with Rahal-Letterman Racing ends after this season, and her father/manager is also in talks with other IRL teams. T.J. and Bev Patrick, however, attended NASCAR's USG Sheetrock 400 last weekend at Chicagoland Speedway and were guests of Roush Racing in the garage area. Roush runs Fords and features drivers Mark Martin, Matt Kenseth, Carl Edwards, Greg Biffle and Jamie McMurray.
So what's the deal, is NASCAR giving away free 50-inch plasma TVs for signing up or has America's favorite form of racing become the most lucrative deal around?
[Source: ESPN]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Phelix 2:34PM (7/10/2006)
Robby Gordon will be thrilled, I'm sure.
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Jason 2:38PM (7/10/2006)
I would assume the side income (endorsements) one can earn as a NASCAR driver in the US is much greater then IRL.
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the other Kevin 2:51PM (7/10/2006)
Apparently the sideline income is more than F1 and Aussie V8 Supercar Challenge money as well. So sad to see the worst sport winning only because of paying the most money...Just like most every thing else american it seems.
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bernie 2:51PM (7/10/2006)
Danica is a very good driver and is a credit to women in racing, but she's not going to revolutionize NASCAR. I'd question how she'll do with and ill-handling car. Check out the upper body strength on most NASCAR drivers today & you can see what kind of leverage it takes to muscle a squirrely 3,700 lb brick for 500 miles in the heat. I wish her luck.
Montoya's a different situation. Formula 1 drivers are the best in the world - period, end of story. Even those who have moderate success in F1 can become stars in other forms of racing. He'll get called "Fifi" in the garage area for about 15 minutes until he sets a couple track records and learns how to swap paint. He'll be a star within one year.
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Dave T. 3:11PM (7/10/2006)
Bernie,
Does that include Jeff Gordon's "upper body strength?" That's the dumbest thing I've ever read as many NASCAR drivers, and drivers in general, are usually small in stature and build.
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Tim UF 3:13PM (7/10/2006)
I personally think that as far as control of their vehicle goes, that the WRC drivers are the best.
NASCAR vehicles likely handle better than you [bernie] give them credit for, watch their road course races. They arent as quick as the open wheel racers because of the aerodynamic and other restrictive guidlines NASCAR enforces.
And, I consider both Danica and JPM major stars of auto racing. Just not in the strosphere like the top Nascar drivers and michael schumacher.
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yo! 3:24PM (7/10/2006)
nascar can't touch the road performance of other race series. Comparing just oval track, for example, IRL runs in a completely different performance category than the technologically inferior nascar vehicles. Nascar is top dog in the U.S. because of it's culture and personalities, not because of performance.
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Paul 3:44PM (7/10/2006)
yo!
but the performance is specifically restricted in nascar races to make it more of what americans want: a full contact sport. (its like Soccer- One guy gets headbutted and it is a huge deal most americans, myself included, dont really understand that)
I think that these will be great additions for both of these racers careers and for NASCAR as well. more drama is better TV.
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Greg A. 3:52PM (7/10/2006)
Do NASCAR rules mandate that cars weigh (about) the same with the driver on board? If so, Patrick would lose the advantage of lighter weight that she's been enjoying in the IRL.
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MikeInNC 4:16PM (7/10/2006)
TimUF -- Anyone who has piloted an F1 car for more than a season is indeed in the stratosphere. I wouldn't put ANY NASCAR driver in that category except for maybe Boris Said. Boris can drive the wheels off of anything but, then again, he grew up on sports car racing. Not family car racing. That being said, they thought Michael Andretti was a great driver and sent him to F1 to become a complete failure. Danica and JPM are better drivers than most all the drivers in NASCAR. They will have to get used to the bloated weight but, once acclimated, I'm sure either or both will do just fine.
NASCAR is entertaining. Don't confuse that with something that takes an extreme level of skill like F1 or World Ralley.
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JC Whitless 4:17PM (7/10/2006)
Well, the cars should weigh the same. The advantage is with a lighter person is that the crew would be able to position the weight where they want it, not where the driver is...
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Crusin' 4:17PM (7/10/2006)
Yes, NASCAR does take drive weight in account and makes adjustments accordingly - Hell, if they didn't I don't think Smoke would ever win a race :)
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JR 4:25PM (7/10/2006)
Give me a break, this chick who spends most of her time doing sexy photo shots ( less then 100 lbs of her) and covering up the pimples on her face is not even close to a good driver.
Her average score has been around 12th place out of only 19 cars and some of them do not even finish the race.
She has not even come close to being up front other then the marketing stunt in last years Inday 500 by waiting for everyone up front to pit and then claimed she lead the Indy 500 only then to run out of gas at the end.
Early this year she blamed the chassis, now she has a new one and is claiming its at fault when we know she is scared of corners and runs more wing angle for more downforce and then has to pit morew often for fuel
The 1st time somone like Steward gave her ass a tap and spin her out she will be crying and wanting her mommie.
As to who the best drivers are you better check the average speed and distances and its not in F1, CART or IRL.
Must be because they are non Amercian drivers.
Nascar is not hurting to fill the bleachers, find another woman if needing but not this big mouthed who thinks she is above all the others but I say let her move to Nascar where now she will finish like 30th out of 42 cars.
I say they are saying that only for marketing/press reasons for she knows with 40-50 Nascar races she would not make it through mid season.
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GOKARTN 4:46PM (7/10/2006)
Apples to Oranges
NASCAR drivers don't have to contend with curves and F1 drivers dont have to contend with 40+ cars running 190mph within 2 inches of each other, bump drafting and some of the other crazy contact. F1 drivers likely have faster reflexes, but NASCAR drivers run longer races, with more close quarters racing on small stadium tracks like Bristol.
Just because most of the fans dont qualify as "the beautiful people", should not discount the abilities of the drivers. Some open wheel drivers has gotten their asses spanked in NASCAR, we will see how JPM and potentially Danica does.
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David 4:58PM (7/10/2006)
So, 13, we get that you don't like women drivers but as far as average speed and distances are concerned, You. Do. Not. Know. what you're talking about. Top speeds in Nascar, a shade over 200. F1, 225 at Monza before braking for a chicane! IRL cars are always running above 210 at Indy except for pit in, pit out and cautions. They're above 205 all the time at Texas. That means 13, that IRL cars on the same track are, at their slowest, faster than Cup cars at top speed.
Race averages? Check out the average speed at INDY for Nascar over 400 miles (which is not a restrictor plate race), and the INDY 500. Case closed.
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naggs 5:05PM (7/10/2006)
"Does that include Jeff Gordon's "upper body strength?" That's the dumbest thing I've ever read as many NASCAR drivers, and drivers in general, are usually small in stature and build."
racing is very grueling and no driver for any form of professional racing is in bad shape. when your talking about jeff gordon, looks can be deciving, he is infact a robot made in the north, a yankee plot to destroy our beloved passtime. LONG LIVE THE SOUTH
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Steve C. 5:10PM (7/10/2006)
Anyone who thinks driving any IRL, Champ Car or NASCAR race requires someone the size of a football player has never stood next to Mario Andretti, who successfully raced everything with four wheels, big and small. "Little guys" (or gals) in fact have a bit of an advantage in modern racing due to g-loads. And, for what it's worth, the g-loads in an IRL car are measurable higher than a Cup car.
Obviously, Patrick can handle the g-loads and since Cup cars have power steering (so you don't really have to "muscle" them), I doubt she'd have any more difficulty driving a full Daytona 500 than she has had driving a full Indy 500.
So stop with the "chick" crap. Last time I checked, Patrick has never been given a head start in any race, or allowed to race a lighter car, or a car with more boost/greater horsepower. And she had behaved far more responsibly on track than a lot of "dudes." More than I can say for some of the above posts.
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Bert 5:37PM (7/10/2006)
This (potential) move, and others that we all know about (JPM) just shows how has-beens and never-beens, those who have reached their level of incompetence, will move in to a series where winning is a crapshoot between any one of 10-20 competitive cars and where finishing 10th or 15th is considered respectable.
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Ian 5:41PM (7/10/2006)
DP is basically a mid pack runner in the IRL. There is no re4ason why she couldn't be a mid pack runner in Nascar.
JPM won the Indy 500, a CART Championship and 7 F1 GPs. He like JV is the "real deal".
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epp_b 5:41PM (7/10/2006)
Maybe F1 is too hard and she needs something with training wheels.
*ducks*
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