May 14, 2012
By Matthew Pizzolato
Matthew Pizzolato
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Last week at Talladega, Danica Patrick ignited a lighting storm of controversy when she wrecked Sam Hornish after the conclusion of the race for putting her into the wall as they raced to the checkered flag.
In his post race interview, Hornish said the reason that he drifted up the track into Patrick's car is because he had a tire going down.
“At the end of the day, we were trying to get a good finish and I got hit in the rear and got into the 87 (Joe Nemechek). It cut the right front tire; it didn’t cut it down, but it started going flat. Coming off four, the tire went flat.
"The 2 (Elliott Sadler) was pushing me which I appreciate, but at that time I didn’t need it. I was trying to get out from in front of him, but the car wouldn’t turn anymore," Hornish was quoted as saying after the race.
"Then after the race was over, we got right-reared by the 7 car (Danica Patrick). I don’t know what she had in her head, but she decided to right-rear us, wreck the car after the race was over. That’s really frustrating. It’s not the worst day ever, but not what we wanted."
The controversy started because many expected Patrick to be punished for her actions and when no penalties were handed down, many cried out that there seems to be a double standard regarding Danica Patrick.
How many other drivers have retaliated after a race in similar fashion? There would be too many to count. How many intentional wrecks have occurred post race? How many helmets have been thrown at cars and how many punches have been thrown? The fight in the infield of the 1979 Daytona 500 is what launched NASCAR into the mainstream.
Danica Patrick is involved in a minor post-race altercation and all of a sudden, NASCAR has a double standard when dealing with her because she wasn't penalized for doing something just about every racer under the sun is guilty of?
Some have compared the tap she gave to Hornish to what Kyle Busch did to Ron Hornaday Jr. at the end of last season. That's like comparing apples to oranges. Busch had been warned repeatedly for his rough driving and the wreck involving Hornaday was much more violent than what Patrick did to Hornish.
In reality, the only double standard is the one that some people have toward her. Just about every driver in the garage has done what she did at some point and when she stands up for herself on the track, it's a horrible travesty.
Although she admitted she intentionally ran into the back of Hornish's car, she claimed she didn't mean to send him into the wall.
"I saw it and I thought to myself -- uh-oh. Because he hit the wall, and I didn't know that. That was not my intention," Patrick was quoted as saying. "That's why I called everyone and let them know it was not my intention. I just meant to tap him to say that I was disappointed that he would put me in the wall like that at the end of the race. But we're all good now."
Apparently everything is all good because Patrick earned her Darlington stripes last Friday night in the Nationwide race. She brought the GoDaddy.com car home in 12th place, which is quite impressive for someone's first attempt at what many consider the most difficult track on the NASCAR circuit. She is currently 10th in the Nationwide standings. Not bad for someone's first full-time season racing stockcars.
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