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| Danica Patrick |
Danica Patrick must decide in the next few months whether she will switch to NASCAR full time, continue to split her time between NASCAR and the IndyCar Series or give up on the NASCAR experiment entirely.
Many believe she will walk away from IndyCar after this season and make the move full time to NASCAR, where she ran 13 Nationwide Series last year and plans to run 12 this year.
Patrick said she hasn’t made a decision yet, but appears to be leaning toward NASCAR.
If she makes the move and leaps to the Sprint Cup Series in 2012 or 2013, which Cup team will she join?
Here are seven possibilities:
1. Stewart-Haas Racing
Stewart-Haas appears to be the most logical choice. SHR has room to expand to three Cup teams, has an owner in Tony Stewart who understands what Patrick is going through and has an affiliation with powerful Hendrick Motorsports.
By going to SHR, Patrick would have a natural mentor in Stewart, who switched from IndyCar to NASCAR in 1999.
The tie to Hendrick might be the most critical aspect as Hendrick has taken an interest in Patrick’s progress as a co-owner of JR Motorsports.
Going to SHR, Patrick would know she has top equipment and a good support system.
2. Joe Gibbs Racing
Considering what JGR did with Stewart – 33 Cup wins and two championships – it has experience with drivers making the switch from
IndyCar.
Gibbs has a strong three-car program and, like SHR, would like expand.
The big question would be how would she fit at JGR. Joey Logano’s progress has been slow with teammates Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin winning races and contending for the championship.
A positive is that JGR has a solid Nationwide program and could have her run another season in Nationwide before moving to Cup, or package it with a part-time Cup schedule.
3. Roush Fenway Racing
Like Gibbs, Roush Fenway could bring Patrick along slowly in the Nationwide Series. And don’t forget, Patrick had her first NASCAR test with Roush a few years ago and attended NASCAR races as a guest of team co-owner Jack Roush.
That led to speculation that if she made the switch to NASCAR, it could be with Roush.
Roush has said that he was only interested if she would commit to NASCAR full time, so if he makes that decision, Roush could be a player.
Roush’s biggest problem could be finding a spot for her on his four-car team. Who knows if Carl Edwards and/or David Ragan will be back next season. With their sponsorship deals with Aflac and UPS expiring after this season, a spot open for her if she brings sponsorship.
4. Red Bull Racing
Red Bull, which has sponsorship from the company that owns the team, comes up in any speculation surrounding top free agents because the beverage company has lots of money, and money talks.
While Red Bull doesn’t seem to be too keen on another developmental program with an open-wheel driver – it’s been there, done that with AJ Allmendinger and Scott Speed – the star power of Patrick might be enough to lure them into talks.
Red Bull also likely could do a deal with Toyota partner Michael Waltrip Racing for a Nationwide Series car for her for a year if that’s what the deal required.
Red Bull could have two driver openings. Kasey Kahne is moving to Hendrick next year after his one-year deal is up and Brian Vickers is unsigned for next season.
5. JR Motorsports
The wild card in all this is if JR Motorsports – Patrick’s current Nationwide team – decides to go Cup racing. The big question isn’t if JR Motorsports could do it – it has Hendrick support and plenty of crewmen with Cup experience – but how good it would be at the Cup level.
The organization has not won a Nationwide race since last summer when Dale Earnhardt Jr. won at Daytona and has lagged behind the Gibbs and Roush teams this year. Patrick has just one top-10 finish – fourth at Las Vegas – in 17 races with JRM.Many believe she will walk away from IndyCar after this season and make the move full time to NASCAR, where she ran 13 Nationwide Series last year and plans to run 12 this year.
Patrick said she hasn’t made a decision yet, but appears to be leaning toward NASCAR.
If she makes the move and leaps to the Sprint Cup Series in 2012 or 2013, which Cup team will she join?
Here are seven possibilities:
1. Stewart-Haas Racing
Stewart-Haas appears to be the most logical choice. SHR has room to expand to three Cup teams, has an owner in Tony Stewart who understands what Patrick is going through and has an affiliation with powerful Hendrick Motorsports.
By going to SHR, Patrick would have a natural mentor in Stewart, who switched from IndyCar to NASCAR in 1999.
The tie to Hendrick might be the most critical aspect as Hendrick has taken an interest in Patrick’s progress as a co-owner of JR Motorsports.
Going to SHR, Patrick would know she has top equipment and a good support system.
2. Joe Gibbs Racing
Considering what JGR did with Stewart – 33 Cup wins and two championships – it has experience with drivers making the switch from
IndyCar.
Gibbs has a strong three-car program and, like SHR, would like expand.
The big question would be how would she fit at JGR. Joey Logano’s progress has been slow with teammates Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin winning races and contending for the championship.
A positive is that JGR has a solid Nationwide program and could have her run another season in Nationwide before moving to Cup, or package it with a part-time Cup schedule.
3. Roush Fenway Racing
Like Gibbs, Roush Fenway could bring Patrick along slowly in the Nationwide Series. And don’t forget, Patrick had her first NASCAR test with Roush a few years ago and attended NASCAR races as a guest of team co-owner Jack Roush.
That led to speculation that if she made the switch to NASCAR, it could be with Roush.
Roush has said that he was only interested if she would commit to NASCAR full time, so if he makes that decision, Roush could be a player.
Roush’s biggest problem could be finding a spot for her on his four-car team. Who knows if Carl Edwards and/or David Ragan will be back next season. With their sponsorship deals with Aflac and UPS expiring after this season, a spot open for her if she brings sponsorship.
4. Red Bull Racing
Red Bull, which has sponsorship from the company that owns the team, comes up in any speculation surrounding top free agents because the beverage company has lots of money, and money talks.
While Red Bull doesn’t seem to be too keen on another developmental program with an open-wheel driver – it’s been there, done that with AJ Allmendinger and Scott Speed – the star power of Patrick might be enough to lure them into talks.
Red Bull also likely could do a deal with Toyota partner Michael Waltrip Racing for a Nationwide Series car for her for a year if that’s what the deal required.
Red Bull could have two driver openings. Kasey Kahne is moving to Hendrick next year after his one-year deal is up and Brian Vickers is unsigned for next season.
5. JR Motorsports
The wild card in all this is if JR Motorsports – Patrick’s current Nationwide team – decides to go Cup racing. The big question isn’t if JR Motorsports could do it – it has Hendrick support and plenty of crewmen with Cup experience – but how good it would be at the Cup level.
But with support from Hendrick, there’s no reason why JR Motorsports couldn’t be somewhat competitive at the Cup level.
A rookie driver with a rookie team doesn’t often work. Still, Patrick appears comfortable at JR Motorsports and the company is used to being high profile and handling a media circus, which would definitely come if Patrick decides to make the jump to go Cup racing.
6. Earnhardt Ganassi Racing
On this list because of Chip Ganassi’s strong IndyCar Series team, Earnhardt Ganassi could provide an opportunity for Patrick to move to the Sprint Cup Series while continuing to run the Indianapolis 500, the race she loves most.
EGR officials have focused on getting their two Cup cars running well rather than expanding, and as long as Juan Pablo Montoya re-signs with the organization, there might not be room for her nor the desire to take on the project of her transition.
But there is room to expand to three teams with sponsorship, and as long as Ganassi is in both series, it could be an option. The opportunity to race a Chevrolet and get help from other Chevrolet teams also could be a bonus for Patrick.
7. Penske Racing
Penske is on this list for the same reason as EGR – Roger Penske also has a strong IndyCar program. Penske also has a Nationwide team that it could use to help Patrick develop.
Much like Red Bull, Penske has not had much success in developing open-wheel drivers in NASCAR. The struggles of three-time IndyCar champion Sam Hornish Jr. might be a clear sign to Patrick that Penske might not be the best option.
Penske’s Cup teams have struggled the past few years and as the only Dodge team, Penske also might not have the support nor depth that Patrick would need to be successful.