A Roof Over Her Head
Anyone who's followed even a smidge of auto racing over the past couple weeks has heard the rumblings of IndyCar Series starlet Danica Patrick considering a move to NASCAR next season, particularly the Nextel Cup Series.
Her contract with Rahal-Letterman Racing expires at the end of this season.
Aside from being a media darling, and the single reason the national media even talks about the IRL, Danica's known for finishing fourth in the 2005 Indianapolis 500 and setting the IRL rookie record for poles in a season (which would be three, for you Trivial Pursuit fans out there).
No wins. No championships.
But she's young and she's hot, so everyone wants her. Including, it would seem, NASCAR. Danica's father T.J. Patrick was a special guest for Roush Racing at the USG Sheetrock 400 at Chicagoland Speedway two Sundays ago, and that got the rumor mill started.
What we do know is this: not only is Rahal-Letterman (who won the Indy 500 a couple years ago with Buddy Rice) trying to negotiate a new deal with Patrick, one other IRL team is in contract discussions (possibly Andretti-Green). We also know of one Nextel Cup team (not sure which one) that has expressed interest in the star.
But the question begs asking: Does NASCAR need Danica Patrick?
Not nearly as much as she might need NASCAR. The racing series is not only by far the most popular motorsport in America, it's also the country's second most popular spectator sport (behind only the National Football League). Hundreds of thousands of fans pack the track every week, and millions more tune in on TV.
And with ABC/ESPN entering the NASCAR television fray next year, said exposure is about to skyrocket even more. ESPN has a lot of say over what the general public thinks is or isn't a sport.
Just look at poker.
So NASCAR doesn't need Danica to bring in more fans and exposure (not to mention money). That's not to say NASCAR won't turn her away; if she decides to jump into a car with a roof over her head, the good ol' boys in the suits and ties will embrace her--and the millions she's going to rake in advertising and television revenues. New fans will come over to NASCAR, if out of nothing else but sheer curiosity.
Danica might not be a successful NASCAR driver, but she would be a rich one.
You know who does need Danica, though? The IndyCar Series. Open-wheel racing has struggled since the highly-publicized CART-IRL split back in 1995, with neither series gathering much, if any, fanfare. These days, the IRL grabs the spotlight only because of its crown jewel, the Indy 500, and because of Danica Patrick.
As for CART? Well, it's now known as the Champ Car World Series, and unless you religiously watch SPEED Channel, you might be under the impression the series no longer exists. SportsCenter's certainly not touching it.
The drivers might not like the attention she gets (which is an awful lot for a driver who's yet to see a checkered flag), but Danica brings the IRL exposure, TV ratings, and money. The last thing Tony George needs is another hotshot open-wheeler to defect to stock car racing (anyone remember Tony Stewart's IRL days?).
If Danica does indeed jump to NASCAR, the IndyCar Series will return to near-complete obscurity. It's a shame, given the quality of the racing in that series, but in American motorsports, NASCAR is king...so much so that even the less successful of drivers can make themselves stars.
So Danica would probably feel right at home.
Her contract with Rahal-Letterman Racing expires at the end of this season.
Aside from being a media darling, and the single reason the national media even talks about the IRL, Danica's known for finishing fourth in the 2005 Indianapolis 500 and setting the IRL rookie record for poles in a season (which would be three, for you Trivial Pursuit fans out there).
No wins. No championships.
But she's young and she's hot, so everyone wants her. Including, it would seem, NASCAR. Danica's father T.J. Patrick was a special guest for Roush Racing at the USG Sheetrock 400 at Chicagoland Speedway two Sundays ago, and that got the rumor mill started.
What we do know is this: not only is Rahal-Letterman (who won the Indy 500 a couple years ago with Buddy Rice) trying to negotiate a new deal with Patrick, one other IRL team is in contract discussions (possibly Andretti-Green). We also know of one Nextel Cup team (not sure which one) that has expressed interest in the star.
But the question begs asking: Does NASCAR need Danica Patrick?
Not nearly as much as she might need NASCAR. The racing series is not only by far the most popular motorsport in America, it's also the country's second most popular spectator sport (behind only the National Football League). Hundreds of thousands of fans pack the track every week, and millions more tune in on TV.
And with ABC/ESPN entering the NASCAR television fray next year, said exposure is about to skyrocket even more. ESPN has a lot of say over what the general public thinks is or isn't a sport.
Just look at poker.
So NASCAR doesn't need Danica to bring in more fans and exposure (not to mention money). That's not to say NASCAR won't turn her away; if she decides to jump into a car with a roof over her head, the good ol' boys in the suits and ties will embrace her--and the millions she's going to rake in advertising and television revenues. New fans will come over to NASCAR, if out of nothing else but sheer curiosity.
Danica might not be a successful NASCAR driver, but she would be a rich one.
You know who does need Danica, though? The IndyCar Series. Open-wheel racing has struggled since the highly-publicized CART-IRL split back in 1995, with neither series gathering much, if any, fanfare. These days, the IRL grabs the spotlight only because of its crown jewel, the Indy 500, and because of Danica Patrick.
As for CART? Well, it's now known as the Champ Car World Series, and unless you religiously watch SPEED Channel, you might be under the impression the series no longer exists. SportsCenter's certainly not touching it.
The drivers might not like the attention she gets (which is an awful lot for a driver who's yet to see a checkered flag), but Danica brings the IRL exposure, TV ratings, and money. The last thing Tony George needs is another hotshot open-wheeler to defect to stock car racing (anyone remember Tony Stewart's IRL days?).
If Danica does indeed jump to NASCAR, the IndyCar Series will return to near-complete obscurity. It's a shame, given the quality of the racing in that series, but in American motorsports, NASCAR is king...so much so that even the less successful of drivers can make themselves stars.
So Danica would probably feel right at home.
posted by Jeff Cunningham at 10:03 AM
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