Danica Patrick to participate in 2012 NASCAR season as full time driver – NASCAR news
Danica Patrick is finalising a deal to participate as a full time driver in NASCAR Nationwide Series 2012 season.
She will also appear in the Sprint Cup series for selected races before shifting to premier series as a full time driver in 2013.
Patrick’s participation will be a positive point for NASCAR. It will increase the exposure of the race series and also help raise television ratings and revenue for the Nationwide Series.
Her stock car career has been somewhat successful. From 17 starts, she has only scored a single top ten finish and four top 20 finishes. In the 2011 season, she has been more successful from her few starts so far, being much better than her Nationwide Series
2010 season participation.
Her IndyCar career success is far better. From 102 starts, she has bagged one victory and 55 top ten finishes. In comparison, a stock race car is entirely different from an open wheel race car, so to excel as a stock car racer she has to get as experienced
as possible.
She is running as a full time racer in IndyCar series and is meanwhile learning the trick of stock car racing. It is a big step to move from a different type of racing into stock car racing.
Danica Patrick is running for Andretti Autosport in IndyCar Series and by the end of 2011, the contract between them will complete its tenure, making her shift to NASCAR series possible.
Patrick’s present contract for NASCAR Nationwide Series is with JR Motorsports, which is owned by Dale Earnhardt Jr. The contract is dated to end with the completion of the season and if the contract is not extended, she will be the highest ranked agent
in the market.
Let’s see how her switch to NASCAR goes for her.
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