Patrick doesn’t fly coop
That long, loud sigh of relief you hear in the distance is coming from everyone in the Indy Racing League.
Danica Patrick, the series’ biggest draw, isn’t going to NASCAR or anywhere else. At least, not yet.
And though she’s sticking with the IRL, she’ll no longer dance with the date that brought her there. Patrick said Tuesday she will leave Rahal Letterman Racing when her contract is up at the end of the 2006 season, joining Andretti Green Racing and all its formidable resources.
Not that the IRL should care much which team she drives for. They’re just fortunate that the 24-year-old – the only woman in the series and its one truly recognizable star – is sticking with open-wheel racing.
Reports earlier this month that her father and agent, T.J. Patrick, was rubbing elbows with NASCAR’s Roush Racing team at a Nextel Cup event in Joliet, Ill., probably caused IRL boss Tony George and his minions to go apoplectic.
Patrick could only have compounded the IRL’s stress level when she said she would certainly be willing to listen if people in NASCAR wanted to talk.
She’s young enough that NASCAR could still be somewhere in her future. For now, though, all that NASCAR talk was just talk. That, and perhaps a negotiating ploy.
While Patrick has yet to win a race in her nearly two full seasons, she has shown enough promise to build a serious fan base and build some real interest among casual sports fans who know little else about open-wheel racing.
Her reputation was assured in 2005 when the then-rookie nearly won the pole at the Indianapolis 500, then went on to become the first woman to lead laps in the big race and finished fourth, also a record for a woman.
Even before that, she was already in demand on TV talk shows, for magazine covers and commercial shoots. After her first showing at Indy, she became a phenomenon, and that hasn’t slowed down much since.
Beyond just keeping Patrick in the series, the IRL certainly has to be delighted that she is moving to a team like AGR, which has a short but successful history in the league. The team, co-owned by longtime driving star Michael Andretti, Kim Green and Kevin Savoree, has 22 wins and two championships since joining the series in 2003.
AGR has struggled this season, watching Marlboro Team Penske and Chip Ganassi Racing win all the races until Tony Kanaan finally broke through with a victory last Sunday in Milwaukee. But the team has tremendous resources and remains a powerful force that could easily bounce back to its dominating ways in 2007.
“Andretti Green has won more races than anyone in the series,” Patrick said. “I’ve said all along that my passion, my heart, my soul has always been in IndyCar Racing. If there was a team that was going to give me a chance to win in the Indy Racing League, that’s where I’m going to be.”
Beyond hiring a promising driver, AGR adds Patrick to a lineup that includes former series champion Kanaan and another budding star, Marco Andretti, Michael’s 19-year-old son and the surprise second-place finisher at Indy in May.
Patrick and the young Andretti would appear to assure AGR of a strong presence in the series for many years to come.
There’s no word yet on the fate of veterans Dario Franchitti, in the final year of his contract, and Bryan Herta, both of whom are part of the four-car AGR team this year. But it is expected that Franchitti will leave to find another IRL or Champ Car ride.
Meanwhile, Michael Andretti feels like he pulled a coup in signing Patrick.
“Our focus has been and always will be on winning races and winning championships. We certainly believe Danica will do that,” he said. “She has made it very clear that one of her goals as a driver is to win the Indianapolis 500 and we are looking forward to giving her a great opportunity to do that.”
Tony George and the rest of the IRL are just thankful she’ll be back to give it a try.