February 21, 2011
By Matthew Pizzolato
Matthew Pizzolato
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With just the first Nationwide series race of the season, Danica Patrick showed what she's capable of behind the wheel of a stock car. With help from drafting partner Clint Bowyer, Patrick raced her way to the front and led a lap, marking the first time in history that a female has led a NASCAR race at Daytona.
And then her inexperience came to the forefront as she was unable to switch positions with Bowyer to allow his engine time to cool. However, she still finished the race in 14th position, one lap down to the leaders, but it was the best finish of her stock car racing career -- a career that is still in its infancy.
"I think it's important to me to keep in perspective that this is not year two for me. This is race 14 for me," Patrick was quoted as saying in a David Caraviello article on nascar.com. "The Nationwide Series is how many races in the year, 34? I've done 13. So this is not my 35th race, this is my 14th. So I need to keep it easy on myself and understand that I still have a lot to learn. It would take three years almost to achieve the full schedule. It's important for me to keep that in mind, because I can get real down on myself when I'm not running up front or running fast, because that's what I'm used to and that's what I hope and expect. But these things take time, and there's lots of cars and lot of experience out there."
Another thing to keep in mind is that of the thirteen drivers that finished ahead of her, eight of them were Cup series regulars. NASCAR has received a lot of criticism for allowing its veteran drivers to take over what is supposed to be its developmental series and recently made a rule change to keep Cup drivers from winning the Nationwide championship. However, what the rule still fails to do is keep them from dominating the races. If you take away those eight Cup drivers, Danica Patrick has a sixth place finish.
While it is beneficial for rookie drivers to compete with veteran racers because of the learning experience it provides, how is it fair to judge an inexperienced driver's skill level against drivers with years of experience?
After posting a fourth place qualifying effort and backing it up with a 14th place finish, she has proven what she can do with a little experience under her belt.
It was publicized before the season started that Patrick's contract with JR Motorsports as well as her current Indycar contract both expire at the end of this season. Speculation has already begun as to what series she will compete in next season.
Even Patrick doesn't yet know the answer to that question. Or if she does, she's not talking about it.
"There are a lot of things dependent on my future and what I do and where I go," she was quoted as saying in the Caraviello article. "It depends on what I want to do, it depends on sponsorship, it depends on all those things. Luckily .
"I have a lot of time to think about it and figure it out and let things unfold. I think it's going to be a matter of letting things run their course this year and making the most of every time I'm in a stock car as well as an IndyCar and see what opportunities arise. I think it will become obvious in the end, but it's important to wait for that and not force anything."
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