Danica Patrick’s divorce has been finalized.

According to RGJ, Patrick and her now ex-husband Paul Hospenthal officially finalized their divorce on April 17. Court documents filed in Maricopa County, Arizona, said that the marriage was “irretrievably broken.”

Patrick announced that she was getting a divorce from her husband back in November.

The NASCAR star wrote on Facebook:

“I am sad to inform my fans that after 7 years, Paul and I have decided to amicably end our marriage. This isn’t easy for either of us, but mutually it has come to this. He has been an important person and friend in my life and that’s how we will remain moving forward.”

Fox Sports reports that Patrick and Hospenthal have no children together. According to Fox News the two entered into a pre-nuptial agreement before they wed back in 2005.

Patrick’s divorce was finalized this month but the NASCAR star hasn’t wasted anytime to find a new love interest. She recently started dating fellow driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

Danica recently became the first woman to earn the pole position at the Daytona 500. She ended up taking 8th at the race, the best finish for a woman in history, and is currently 25th in the Sprint Cup standings.

My lovely @stenhousejr took me to dinner with a movie. #painandgain is worth a trip to the theater!

— Danica Patrick (@DanicaPatrick) April 19, 2013

Are you a fan of Danica Patrick?

Danica Patrick Divorce Finalized is a post from: The Inquisitr

Danica Patrick was recently told to just “shut up and race” by one of her rivals after she complained about the way he drove. David Gilliland made the comments after the latest go-round between the two.

While the young female driver tends to get more attention for what she does off the racetrack, there is an argument to be made that she is actually quite good at her job.

The driver is currently ranked 25th in the Sprint Cup standings and has enough races under her belt that she has enough wrecks to qualify as a “real” driver.

Danica Patrick still tends to get treated as someone who shouldn’t have an opinion or should just be happy to be there as witness by her latest clash with Gilliland.

The latest incident came at the Kansas motor speedway when she became annoyed at the way her opposition was driving around her on the track.

“He tries to take me out every time,” racing’s most successful female driver told her crew over the radio.  ”Tell his spotter that I’m coming after him if he does it again.” she added.

While she never did go after Gilliland, the other driver heard about her comments post contest and has some choice words of his own. The short and sweet “shut up and race” was enough to deliver the message.

That seems like sage advice, especially considering that the driver is not exactly having a fantastic 2013 season. She finished 25th in that particular race and hasn’t won a major contest yet this year.

The run in with her opponent was apparently not the most damaging section of the afternoon. A piece of debris apparently landed on her grille at one point, causing her water temperature to overheat.

Her subsequent unscheduled pit stop is one of the reasons she finished so far behind the lead.

Do you think Danica Patrick should just “shut up and race?”

[Image by Nickledford]

Danica Patrick Told To ‘Shut Up And Race’ By David Gilliland is a post from: The Inquisitr

This Danica Patrick buckle is worth around 10,000 Twitter followers – at least, it is if you’re Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

Patrick and Stenhouse, NASCAR’s first couple, struck a deal whereby Patrick would help her beau expand his Twitter following in return for the flashy cowboy belt buckle above. With almost 890,000 Twitter followers, Danica Patrick clearly knows a thing or two about building an audience. As she explained to Fox:

“This started at the beginning of last year when he wanted some Twitter followers. I said, ‘If I help you with that can I have a belt buckle?’ That started at Daytona. So he had it made. I got it just before the second Texas race last year so I wore it last year at the end of the year.”

The Danica Patrick buckle is similar to the rodeo attire worn by Stenhouse, the two-time Nationwide Series champion.

The custom-made buckle features Patrick’s logo in the center. On each side of this are diamond-encrusted Nos. 10 and 7, representing the two car numbers Patrick drove last year. Beneath the logo and numbers are capital letters spelling out Patrick’s name. Patrick seems very taken by her latest accessory:

“It was very nice. I know these things are handmade, they’re not cheap, and it’s really cool to have. It says ‘To the fastest girl in town‘ so it was a nice gift. He didn’t actually need to live up to the bet but it was nice that he did.”

Patrick came over all cowgirl on Twitter yesterday (see below), this would seem the perfect accessory for her outfit.

Before championship rings were adopted, buckles were a common prize in NASCAR. When Stenhouse won his second Nationwide Series title last year, he said he would prefer a buckle.

What do you make of Danica Patrick’s buckle?

Yep, I went cowgirl today. My new @tonylama boots and straw hat felt so good. img.ly/u3yb

— Danica Patrick (@DanicaPatrick) April 11, 2013

Danica Patrick Buckle Worth 10,000 Twitter Followers [Photo] is a post from: The Inquisitr

Matt Kenseth wins the Kobalt Tools 400 in Las Vegas after holding off Kasey Kahne with a little over 20 laps left in the race. Kenseth is now the third Sprint Cup driver to win on his birthday; He turned 41-years-old Sunday.

Kasey Kahne had the best car all day, but a mix-up on his last pit stop cost him a couple positions that he never fully recovered from. Matt Kenseth took advantage, playing the guessing game on fuel. Kenseth elected to stay out instead of pit to take the lead and he never gave it up.

Kyle Busch and Jimmie Johnson also had fast cars in Las Vegas, finishing fourth and sixth respectively.  Last season’s champion Brad Keselowski started from the pole and had his best run of the season, finishing in third place.

This was Matt Kenseth’s first win as a member of Joe Gibbs racing as he jumps 11 spots in the standings to seventh. Jimmie Johnson continues to hold the lead after another top-10 finish.

Kasey Kahne led 112 laps on the day, better than anyone else on the track, and even Kenseth made note of it in Victory Lane.

“I was real nervous all day, he had the best car,” Kenseth said about Kasey Kahne.

Matt Kenseth finished seventh last week after a rough start to the season at Daytona. Kenseth started 12th at Daytona before falling to the back of the pack and finishing 37th.

Carl Edwards finished fifth after winning last week in Phoenix and is now 11th in the standings. Edwards jumped 19 spots in the standings last week and picked up six more spots Sunday.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. was near the front all day long, and finished seventh. Even with the top-10 finish, Earnhardt Jr. lost the second spot in the standings to Brad Keselowski.

Multiple drivers were penalized for pit road incidents during the race, including Denny Hamlin and Danica Patrick. Hamlin was penalized for entering the pits too fast and Patrick for a tire violation.

Danica Patrick finished 33rd while Denny Hamlin managed to work his way back for a modest 15th place finish. The Sprint Cup Series moves forward to Bristol Motor Speedway next week for the Food City 500.

Kyle Busch was hoping to win in his home town Sunday, but will have a great chance to take the checkered flag next week at Bristol.  Busch has won at Bristol five times during his Sprint Cup career.

Matt Kenseth stole the show from Kasey Kahne and used the don’t pit strategy to perfection. Kahne was getting a great run off the corners of one and two, and nobody thought Kenseth’s tires would hold off Kahne late.

Kenseth stuck to the high side and beat out Kahne by a few car lengths. Matt Kenseth wins the Kobalt Tools 400 by gambling with his pit strategy, the only way to do it in Las Vegas.

Matt Kenseth Wins The Kobalt Tools 400 In Las Vegas is a post from: The Inquisitr

Danica Patrick was hit by a rock while racing on a dirt track, but NASCAR’s pre-eminent female racer says she’s not hurt.

Danica was racing on the track on Thursday when she got hit by the stray rock square in her head. The impact left her feeling like she had a concussion, but staff at the infield care center checked her out and said she would be all right.

It could have been worse for Danica Patrick when she was hit by the rock. The racer said if she wasn’t wearing a hat she almost certainly would have been cut.

Oddly enough, Danica had just escaped from one of the worst crashes of he career last Sunday in Phoenix. Her No. 10 Chevrolet blew a right front tire during the Sprint Cup race at Phoenix International Raceway, sending her crashing into the frontstretch wall.

Danica was on the lead lap, running 26th on Lap 185 of the 312-lap race when the crash occurred. After her tire blew out Danica was left unable to turn the car, and slammed into the barrier with the right front corner of her car.

Car parts were sent flying all over the track as the back tires of the No. 10 Chevrolet lifted off the ground. The crash caused David Ragan’s car to hit the side panel of Danica’s car, shearing the sheet metal off the Chevrolet.

Danica Patrick said the accident was scary, but ultimately she was all right.

“When you lose a tire out of the turn, those are tough because you hit [the wall] more straight on,” Patrick said after the crash. “That was a hard hit on both sides, but I’m fine. There was no real good warning. No vibrations.

Though Danica Patrick was hit by a rock in Thursday’s crash, the racer has enjoyed a pretty good stretch lately. She became the first woman ever to win the pole position and lead green-flag laps at the Daytona 500 in February. Danica finished eighth in the race.

Danica Patrick Hit By Rock While Racing On Dirt Track is a post from: The Inquisitr

Danica Patrick had a fantastic weekend at the Daytona 500 earlier this month but she couldn’t keep the momentum building at the Phoenix International Raceway today. Patrick hit the wall and had to retire from the race.

Thankfully, Patrick wasn’t injured in the crash.

Patrick said:

“Thank God for safer barriers … I’m glad I didn’t drive in the days without them, because they’re very important.”

According to the Star Tribune, Patrick was in 26th place with about 100 laps to go when she blew a tire heading into a turn. Patrick’s car hit the wall hard and was then hit again by David Ragan.

Patrick said:

“Whenever those right-fronts go, they always hit hard because you don’t broadside, you hit more straight on … You don’t anticipate, you don’t slide very much, there’s no way to slow the car down. They always feel pretty big, and whenever they go in head-first, they feel even bigger.”

Patrick became the first woman in NASCAR history to win a Sprint Cup Pole last weekend at the Daytona International Speedway. Patrick was able to lead a few laps at Daytona but eventually fell back to 8th place.

Patrick told USA Today:

“For me, it sucks to lose the points … Everybody works hard and after last weekend, we just wanted to get these three races to get some solid points to re-establish the garage area. We’re parked in the dirt this weekend, so I really wanted my guys to get into the garage area. We’ll just have to get it at Vegas.”

Here’s a video of Danica Patrick hitting the wall in Phoenix.

While Danica Patrick checked out the infield medical center Carl Edwards made his to victory. Edwards, who finished 33rd last weekend at Daytona, said: “This is just awesome, one of the coolest wins of my life.”

Danica Patrick Hits Wall, Escapes Uninjured is a post from: The Inquisitr

Carl Edwards took the checkered flag at Phoenix International Raceway just one week after being involved in five accidents at Daytona. Edwards finished 33rd in the Daytona 500, which included one of his five wrecks for the week. Not only does the win erase Edwards bad start in Florida, but also snaps a 70 race winless streak. Edwards last win came March 6, 2011 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, almost two years ago.

A sight Nascar fans haven’t seen in a long time, Carl Edwards stopped at the line and did his classic back-flip off the No. 99 Subway Ford Fusion. Edwards then went on to grab the checkered flag and proceeded through a gate and right into the stands. Edwards greeted and gave high-fives to fans for a few moments before returning to his car.

“This is just awesome, one of the coolest wins of my life,” Edwards said about the win at Phoenix.

Carl Edwards led the final 78 laps of the race, taking the lead during final pit stops for the drivers still in contention. Jimmie Johnson edged out Denny Hamlin for second after Hamlin dived extremely low on the track to pick up a few spots on the last lap. The two cars connected off the last turn and Johnson picked up momentum off the high side, taking Hamlin by a nose.

Brad Keselowski finished fourth, followed by Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Clint Bowyer. Matt Kenseth, Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon, and Jeff Burton rounded out the top-10.

Danica Patrick had a rough day which ended when her right front tire blew, sending her into the wall with about 100 laps to go. Patrick was cleared from the Medical Center shortly after the wreck.

Mark Martin had the pole after recording some of the fastest laps in practice all week, but couldn’t maintain the lead after 49 laps. Martin fell back in the pack before leading another 26 laps. At 54 years old, Mark Martin became the second oldest person of all-time to start from the pole in a Sprint Cup race.

Jimmie Johnson will continue to hold the top spot in the standings with his first and second finishes in the first two races of the season. It was great to see the Carl Edward’s back-flip once again, and the win could give him some momentum going into next week at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Carl Edwards Wins In Phoenix After Rough Week At Daytona is a post from: The Inquisitr

After finishing eighth at Daytona, Danica Patrick is being considered a “longshot” to win at Phoenix this weekend.

Right now Patrick is doing something in NASCAR that not many women have been able to do. She is breaking stereotypes and proving racing is not just a boys sport.

Until she wins more though, race fans and oddsmakers just won’t believe it.

Danica Patrick has been given 300/1 odds to win her next race at Phoenix. According to USA Today, those are the second worst odds given for the race this year.

The first woman to win pole position at Daytona, and then lead a lap for the first time ever, has been given the second worst odds in her very next race. Does that seem odd to you? USA Today claims it comes down to skills:

“Daytona requires a completely different skill set than every other track in NASCAR except for Talladega. Where drivers run in a big pack and draft at Daytona and Talladega because their speeds are restricted, success at the other tracks depend much more on driver skill.”

In other words; Danica Patrick still needs to prove herself. Until she has finished more than 11 Sprint Cup Races, she will continue to have doubters. In those 11 races her highest finish was Daytona.

Before Daytona, Danica Patrick had never placed higher than 17. A strong finish at Phoenix this weekend could help prove Daytona might not have been a fluke.

James Franco’s unfortunate comments at Daytona show exactly the kind of hill Patrick is still climbing for respect.

Do you think it’s fair Danica Patrick is a “longshot” to win at Phoenix this weekend?

[image via Action Sports Photography / Shutterstock.com]

Danica Patrick A ‘Longshot’ To Win At Phoenix is a post from: The Inquisitr

Jimmie Johnson won the Daytona 500 today beating out Dale Earnhardt Jr. on the final lap.

Danica Patrick, who made history earlier this week when she won the pole position, became the highest finishing woman in race history be claiming 8th place. Patrick was the first woman to lead a lap at the Daytona 500 today and was in the running for victory until the final lap.

A series of riders passed Patrick, who was riding in third at the start of the final lap, and the popular driver had to settle for 8th place.

For Jimmie Johnson, it was his second career Daytona 500 victory.

Johnson started to pull away with about 6 laps left and wasn’t challenged for the remainder of the race. Dale Earnhardt Jr. came closest but he couldn’t catch Johnson by the finish line.

Hendrick Motorsports writes:

“As Johnson raced for the finish line and ultimately Victory Lane, Dale Earnhardt Jr. improved his position to score the runner-up result and give Hendrick Motorsports its fourth one-two finish at the 2.5-mile superspeedway. This is the organization’s third one-two finish in the Daytona 500 (February 1989 and February 1997).”

Mark Martin took third place while Brad Keselowski and Ryan Newman completed the top five.

Jimmie Johnson Wins Daytona 500 is a post from: The Inquisitr

Commentary |When one thinks about the sport of racing, the first name that doesn’t come to mind is James Franco. Regardless, Franco was on hand this afternoon to kick off the Daytona 500 as this year’s grand marshal, and to promote his new film Oz: The Great And Powerful.

Over the years those before him have uttered the historical words of “Gentlemen, start your engines!” However, Franco had a new spin on it. One that people aren’t too happy about. Reports out of Daytona 500 claim that instead of saying the signature, “Gentleman, start your engines!” Franco yelled excitedly, “Drivers — and Danica — start your engines!”

Many saw this exclusive calling out of Danica Patrick as the worst flub in the Daytona 500. However, most publications aren’t actually taking into consideration the knowledge of the race in relation to Franco singling out Danica. While most see it as a flub by the first time grand marshal, it seems as though no one is really considering the history around this race for Danica. In many ways she’s a driver in a league all of her own.

USA Today reports the scene that many did not see from their living rooms as Patrick, the first woman ever to win the pole for a Sprint Cup Series race, climbed into her car to a wild scene. All eyes were on Danica Patrick as the drivers prepared for the 55th running of the Daytona 500. So much that it could be argued that Franco really meant to highlight the moment everyone was in albeit through a strange command.

Do you think James Franco should have singled Danica Patrick out from the rest of the drivers? Was his words well intentioned or out of line? Sound off here.

UPDATE: James Franco has released a statement via his Instagram about the blunder, scrawling over a picture of Danica Patrick that reads: “Sorry I was excited for Danica. I should have said ‘Gentlemen.’ Sorry, I’m an idiot.”

Did James Franco Really Insult Danica Patrick At Daytona 500? is a post from: The Inquisitr

Drivers and Danica, start your engines! Danica Patrick may have grabbed the pole position before the Daytona 500 but apparently that’s not enough to earn the respect of Grand Marshal James Franco.

Franco gave Danica a special shout out as he got the annual race started this afternoon but it came off as more of an insult than a compliment.

Franco said: “Drivers … and Danica! Start your engines!”

Franco was trying to give the popular NASCAR driver a little extra attention but it sounded like he was belittling Danica Patrick’s driving skills.

The phrase, Drivers and Danica, quickly started trending on Twitter as Patrick fans voiced their anger with Franco.

Female motorcycle racer Elena Myers wrote: I was a James Franco fan until his statement saying “Drivers and Danica, start your engines.”…. C’mon…

Chris Credendino was just mad that Franco screwed up the most famous words in NASCAR history, writing: “I know that @JamesFrancoTV didn’t meant it, but he definitely butchered the most famous words in #NASCAR with that @DanicaPatrick comment.”

What do you think of James Franco’s comment? Was “Drivers and Danica” an insult?

Drivers And Danica? James Franco Insults Patrick Before Daytona 500 is a post from: The Inquisitr

When the Daytona 500 takes off today at 1:30 EST, Danica Patrick will be under pressure not just as a racer, but as the top draw for new NASCAR fans. Even before she made history as the first woman to win the pole, she was already recognized for drawing new, younger, and more diverse fans to the sport, according to a Forbes report by Darren Heitner.

A late 2012 market study showed that new female fans are especially worth attracting to the sport. According to the survey performed by Taylor Strategy, 82% of women fans recommend NASCAR to family and friends.

“Danica has immense ‘star power,’” Jon Flack of Just Marketing International, a motorsports marketing firm, told Forbes. Her over 720,000 followers on Twitter would certainly agree.

Other NASCAR racers also recognize her role as the sport’s top draw, at least to younger women. Last week, three top male drivers — Jeff Gordon, Carl Edwards, and Jimmie Johnson — even brought their daughters to meet Patrick, Jenna Fryer reported in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

“That’s three pretty big drivers who have little girls that wanted to meet me,” Patrick said.

Even before she won the historic pole position for the Daytona 500 race, the Taylor report stated that there’s growing money and attention in NASCAR. 71% of the younger fans in the 18-34 age group said they would be more likely to buy a sponsor’s product — and they’re willing to splash out. The sponsors they’d like to see included Nike, Google, and Apple.

Has her role as NASCAR’s ambassador rattled her nerves? She may have blundered in yesterday’s Nationwide race, when she pulled out early. She thought her engine was dead, but her pit crew fired it up. Some reports had the embarrassed star in tears when she realized her mistake.

If Patrick wins today, it could mean unprecedented new support for NASCAR. That won’t stop other drivers from trying to beat her, though. Tony Stewart, the winner of yesterday’s ill-starred Nationwide race, told USA Today that he feels “mule-kicked” every time he loses the Daytona 500. He sounds like a man determined to offer Patrick a challenge.

Daytona 500: Danica Patrick’s ‘Star Power’ Draws Fans is a post from: The Inquisitr

The Daytona 500 will take place as scheduled on Sunday despite a fiery crash at the Daytona International Speedway on Saturday that sent debris flying into stands.

The crash took place on the final curve of the Nationwide Series Drive4COPD 300, leaving 28 fans injured, including otwo initially listed in critical conditions. The Daytona crash was caught on a video posted on YouTube, showing a scene of chaos as the massive crash on the track spills over the barrier and into the crowd. The video shows a man waving frantically to get help for a wounded person as a tire rests among the crowd.

While Daytona International Speedway officials expressed condolences for those hurt, they also noted that the Daytona 500 is set to go on as scheduled.

“First and foremost, our thoughts and prayers are with our race fans,” the speedway said in a statement released Saturday. “We are in the process of repairing the facility, and we will be ready to go racing tomorrow.”

As track officials and racers prepare for the Daytona 500, victims of the crash are recovering. Byron Cogdell, a spokesman for the hospital that took in 12 victims, told CNN that many were improving. Two of them, including one child, were initially listed in critical condition but have since stabilized, officials said.

With the Daytona 500 going on as scheduled, fans can turn their attention to a historic start to the race. Last week Danica Patrick earned the pole position for the race, the first woman driver ever to start the Daytona 500 in that position.

Daytona 500 To Go On As Scheduled Despite Fiery Crash On Saturday is a post from: The Inquisitr

Danica Patrick bowed out of the Nationwide race at Daytona International Speedway, though it may have been more the result of a rookie mistake than car troubles.

Patrick had her engine shut off in Turn 3 during Saturday’s race. She hat yet to blow an engine, but she figured “that’s exactly how it go.”

So, instead of pulling into her pit box to see if her crew could diagnose and fix the problem quickly, Danica pulled her car into the garage.

A blown engine isn’t fixable, but Patrick’s crew still went to work diagnosing the problem. USA Today reports that Danica Patrick, who thought she was out of the race, had just finished an interview with ESPN when her crew fired up the engine and turned it off again.

To Danica’s horror, it appeared the engine was working perfectly. With a look of shock on her face, the pole sitter for the Daytona 500 walked to the corner of the garage and put her face in her hands.

Appearing to be on the verge of tears, she appeared to wonder if she made a huge mistake by bringing her car to the garage, notes Yahoo! News.

Later on, however, her crew assured her that the problem was likely the entire ignition system, meaning she would have needed to go to the garage anyway. NASCAR stock cars have a backup ignition, but it appeared not to be working. Danica Patrick, who stayed out of the rest of the race, stated of the incident:

“A good lesson that if there was a potential fix at some point, you know you just always go down pit lane and get in your pit box and just do everything possible to fix it.”

Despite being out, Danica Patrick didn’t see the Nationwide race as a complete waste. Instead, she said she will use the experience to prepare for Sunday’s Daytona 500, where she will lead the field to the green flag.

[Image via Beelde Photography / Shutterstock.com]

Danica Patrick Out Of Nationwide Race, Prepares For Daytona 500 is a post from: The Inquisitr

Kevin Harvick won the first of two Budweiser Duel qualifying races Thursday, putting him in the third spot at the Daytona 500 behind Danica Patrick and Jeff Gordon. He is widely viewed as the fan favorite for the “Great American Race,” which takes place this Sunday, February 24th.

This title is not necessarily one that Harvick would have picked for himself. “We like to be the lame-duck underdog. That’s what we’re shooting for,” Harvick told CBS News. ”If it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be. We definitely have the car and team to be in contention to do that.”

With the NASCAR racers still getting accustomed to their new gen-6 racing cars, however, there is plenty of time for players other than Kevin Harvick to shine. Additionally, ESPN reports that Kyle Busch (winner of the second Budwiser Duel) sees the Daytona 500 as a having a much different dynamic than the qualifying battles we’ve seen so far, with double the cars racing through Speedweeks on Sunday compared to Thursday’s race.

“There were half the field in each race, obviously,” Busch said. “There’s going to be twice as many good cars, twice as many middle of the pack cars, twice as many back of the pack cars.  If you can get your car handling, driving, feeling good, you’ll be able to be one of the guys that’s up front.”

Fellow driver Danica Patrick made history last week as she became the first woman to win the pole position for a race in NASCAR’s top division. She blazed through the two-and-a-half mile track at an average speed of 196.434 miles per hour. Patrick may still have a tough battle ahead of her, however: According to CBS News, only about one out of every five previous NASCAR pole winners has gone on to win the Daytona 500.

Last week Kevin Harvick won NASCAR’s Sprint Unlimited race for the third time in his career. After picking up the lead during the second segment, he maintained control of the race with only Greg Bittle offering a potential upset before Harvick claimed victory. Fans were able to vote on the structure of the Sprint Unlimited exhibition, a first in NASCAR history. Who are you rooting for this Sunday?

Kevin Harvick Secures 3rd Spot In Daytona 500 is a post from: The Inquisitr

Danica Patrick had a fast start at trials for the Daytona 500, giving her a shot of becoming the first female driver ever to win pole position for the race.

Patrick finished the second Sprint Cup practice with a fast lap of 196.220 mph, eight-tenths of a second faster than Joey Logano’s best lap of 195.410 in the morning session, ESPN noted.

“I suppose being the fastest going into qualifying is as good as you can hope for,” said Patrick, who was third-fastest in the morning session. “Everything that we do is to make sure we do whatever we can to be on the pole. That’s what we all are shooting for.

“But tomorrow is a whole other day. You’ve got to hope the weather stays very consistent.”

Danica Patrick‘s fast start could earn her the first pole in a Sprint Cup race in her career. In 10 races last season, her best start was a 23rd she earned at Atlanta. Patrick started first at Daytona last season, when she competed full-time in the Nationwide Series.

It would be quite an accomplishment if Patrick could replicate the top start this year on NASCAR’s premier circuit, USA Today noted.

“It would be really nice,” Patrick said of winning the 500 pole. “It’s a very big pole of all of them in the year for attention, especially for [sponsor] GoDaddy, who is on the car. There are other races throughout the year that as a driver you feel more pleased or proud of yourself to get, but this one is a whole team effort.”

Danica Patrick has been in the news for reasons other than her fast start and her shot at the Daytona 500 pole. A few weeks ago she confirmed that she’s dating fellow NASCAR driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr., though the couple has tried to keep quiet about their personal life.

Danica Patrick Has Fast Start, Chance To Be First Female Driver To Win Pole For Daytona 500 is a post from: The Inquisitr

NASCAR driver Danica Patrick has reportedly filed for divorce from her husband Paul Hospenthal. The split was originally announced by Patrick on Facebook towards the end of November.

The Superior Court of Maricopa County received the official paperwork from Patrick on January 3. According to Fox Sports, the driver explained in court documents that her marriage to Hospenthal was “irretrievably broken.”

Since a prenuptial agreement was signed prior to their union, it would appear that neither party is interested in fighting over money. Reports also indicate that Patrick and Hospenthal are not asking for alimony or spousal support from one another.

News of the divorce first arrived on Facebook. Eager to address the news before it spread out of control around the internet, the NASCAR driver instead took the announcement directly to her friends.

Danica Patrick wrote:

“I am sad to inform my fans that after seven years, Paul and I have decided to amicably end our marriage. This isn’t easy for either of us, but mutually it has come to this. He has been an important person and friend in my life and that’s how we will remain moving forward.

USA Today explains that Patrick is hoping to file a settlement agreement at some point in the future. This will reportedly cover any property or monies that weren’t covered by the couple’s prenuptial agreement.

Danica Patrick and Paul Hospenthal married in 2005. The pair met when Paul, a physical therapist, began treating Danica for an injury. The couple soon tied the knot despite their 17 year age difference. During their marriage, Hospenthal kept a pretty low profile and was rarely spotted during many of his wife’s races.

Are you a fan of NASCAR driver Danica Patrick? Are you sad to hear that she has filed for divorce from her husband Paul Hospenthal?

Danica Patrick Files For Divorce From Husband Paul Hospenthal is a post from: The Inquisitr

Danica Patrick let her frustration with Landon Cassill get the worst of her as she wrecked both hers and Cassill’s stock cars during Sunday’s Sprint Cup Series race at Kansas Speedway.

Patrick drove into turn one at lap 155 right on Cassill’s rear bumper. She maintained contact with him through the turn, moving him up the track, reports Yahoo! News.

While her message was certainly delivered, the GoDaddy.com driver got more than she bargained for, sending both cars into a spin. When Patrick attempted to correct the spin, she backed up into the wall, ending her day. After she got out of her car, Danica stated:

“I have just been really frustrated with the No. 83. He slammed into me on the front straight for no reason than his radio communication ‘She was in the way.’ I’ve always played fair. If it’s one time, I can imagine frustration. But it’s been pretty consistent with him getting in to me.”

Patrick’s crew chief, Stewart-Haas Racing competition director Greg Zipadelli, was reportedly not amused by her attempt at retaliation, telling his driver, “You know better than to do that.” SB Nation notes that Danica Patrick went on to say:

“At some point I have to stand up for myself so this doesn’t happen with other people. I chose today.”

After the race, Landon Cassill spoke reporters about the incident, saying that he didn’t hit Patrick because she was in the way, but because she was “driving like a maniac making it three-wide on a restart” when other drivers were “staying cool to keep from wrecking.”

Landon Cassill also noted that the only other run in he can recall with Patrick was when he accidentally nudged her car coming off the corner during a race in Atlanta.

Before crashing herself and Cassill, Danica Patrick was running inside the top 20. Because of the damage she sustained, she finished 32nd. Cassill finished 18th.

Danica Patrick Crashes Herself And Landon Cassill At Kansas City is a post from: The Inquisitr

Danica Patrick led the race for 20 laps at Montreal this weekend, but then she hit a shoe.

Patrick was in the lead at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve when a spectator threw a shoe onto the track. Patrick ran over the shoe and was able to hold the lead for the next few laps, but soon a mechanical failure, possibly caused by the shoe, forced her out of the lead.

After hitting the sneaker, Patrick can be heard on her radio, saying:

“What did I just hit?… Something’s wrong with my steering…”

Patrick eventually had to pull off the track and into pit row. She re-entered the race and eventually finished in 27th. Justin Allgaeir won the race.

Saturday’s race played out like several of Patrick’s other races this season. No, she hasn’t hit any other shoes, but Patrick has suffered several crashes and mechanical errors. Despite scoring some good qualifying positions, Patrick hasn’t been able to grab a win. She’s also failed to finish 6 times and is currently out of the top 10 in the point standings.

SHR co-owner/driver Tony Stewart defended Patrick’s results, saying that over-critical of his driver.

Stewart said:

“I’ll be honest, I wish everybody would get off her back and just let her go race and let her learn. Everybody is putting so much pressure on her and so much focus on her… Going to a place that you’ve been to is obviously going to help, but everybody needs to take a step back and let this girl learn and do what she is trying to do there.”

Here’s the video of Danica Patrick hitting the shoe in Montreal.

Who Throws A Shoe? Danica Patrick Hit By Sneaker During Montreal Race [Video] is a post from: The Inquisitr

Danica Patrick may not be the fastest driver on the track but she is the fastest girl in town. The famous NASCAR driver recently teamed up with Miranda Lambert for the country singer’s new of music video.

The video, for the song “Fastest Girl In Town,” shows Lambert and Patrick being bad, sexy, and criminal.

Miranda said:

“I really get to act in the video. We have live sound and action scenes which feel more like a mini-movie than a music video.”

They steal a car, get shot at by their victim, and out run the cops. And in the end, Lambert’s upset that the entire heist happened so quickly that she couldn’t finish her beer. Thankfully, Patrick offers to make things right and buy her partner in crime a cold beverage. Could there be a sequel to “The Fastest Girl In Town?”

Lambert said:

“Danica has a really busy schedule, and I’m thrilled she was able to take time to come to Tennessee and be a part of this.”

Patrick hasn’t had much luck on the track this year. She has had a few crashes this season and is still looking for her first NASCAR win.

Here’s the video for “Fastest Girl In Town” featuring Danica Patrick.

Danica Patrick Is ‘The Fastest Girl In Town’ [Video] is a post from: The Inquisitr

Danica Patrick‘s Indianapolis return is not what she had hoped, because of an uncooperative race car and contact with Reed Sorenson on lap 39, which sent both cars into the Turn 1 wall.

Yahoo News reports that, despite Patrick’s car not turning like she wanted, her crew chief, Tony Eury Jr., told her:

“We were running 53-flats [seconds per lap] all day [Thursday]. Now we’re running 54.30s. Make something happen.”

But it wasn’t meant to be, and just a few laps later, her lime green No. 7 Chevrolet costed her her first return to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway since she last attempted the Indianapolis 500 in 2011.

Danica Patrick made contact with Sorenson’s car on Lap 39, sending both cars into the wall, with Patrick’s JR Motorsports car taking the worst of the impact. immediately after her car stopped, she stated, “It’s done. I can’t drive it.” She was checked at the infield medical center after the wreck, then released with a clean bill of health. The Nationwide rookie stated:

Danica Patrick Crashes In Indianapolis Return is a post from: The Inquisitr

Danica Patrick is going to win at Daytona. At least that’s what she believes.

Patrick appeared on The Dan Patrick show this morning and said that she’s feeling pretty good about the race.

Patrick said:

“I heard one of the officials come over and say that all of the officials are basically saying I’m going to win the race tonight. They’ve been around a long time, and they’ve seen a lot of races. I’m going with the officials on this one. … Get ready.”

Patrick later clarified her statement saying that she wasn’t making a bold prediction of victory, instead, she just wasn’t going to bet against herself.

Patrick said:

“I was thinking later, ‘Wait a minute. That kind of sounded like a jerk thing to say.’ What I really should have said was, ‘Well, I shouldn’t bet against myself, should I?’ So that’s my answer. I really shouldn’t bet against myself.”

Patrick qualified in fourth before Daytona and is hoping to become the first woman to win a NASCAR national series race.

Patrick said:

“It’s like when somebody asks you before a race if you’re going to win. Well, of course I’m going to try to win. That’s the best that I can do. I have the best chance possible, with the most experience at this track versus any other one. And the fact that I’m driving a JR Motorsports car; they’re really fast on speedways… We had a great shot at winning this race last year. I think it’s as good a chance as ever.”

Do you think Danica Patrick will win at Daytona?

Danica Patrick Predicts Daytona Victory is a post from: The Inquisitr

Nationwide driver Jacques Villeneuve didn’t have a great race at the Sargento 200 last Saturday at Road America.

Villenueve made contact with Elliot Sadler and spun Danica Patrick during the four mile race, and afterward, he was unapologetic about his actions.

Villenueve said:

“We had nothing to do together. When I was behind Danica and Papis was on the outside, maybe he didn’t know I was there, but down the straight he pushed me in the grass just where we hit he brakes. So when I jumped in the brakes I was in the grass because of that, I wasn’t right next to him so no idea. Couldn’t slow down after that.”

Penske Racing and Discount Tire agreed that the contact was just part of professional racing, but said that they were disappointed with how Villenueve handled the situation.

Villenueve’s sponsors released a statement, saying:

“Together Penske and Discount Tire have achieved great success in the Nationwide Series, including a championship (in 2010) and have maintained the highest levels of integrity and sportsmanship throughout that relationship. Although we believe the contact between Villeneuve and Patrick to be unfortunate, it is a part of professional racing. However, Villeneuve’s postrace comments did not reflect our ideals regarding sportsmanship.”

CBS reports that Danica Patrick was likely on her way to her best finish when she was bumped by Villeneuve, causing her to spin out of control. Patrick’s crew chief Tony Eury Jr. confronted Villeneuve after the incident but the driver of the No. 22 Dodge insisted that he did nothing wrong.

Here’s the video of the incident.

Sponsors Unhappy With Jacques Villeneuve’s Actions At Sargento 200 is a post from: The Inquisitr

Danica Patrick and Sam Hornish Jr. got tangled up again on track Saturday during the NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Dover.

SB Nation reports that the two former Indy car drivers got together with 67 laps to go, and that Patrick’s car seemed to take the worst of the brunt. When Hornish Jr. got out of his car after a 13th place finished, he winced upon seeing the mass of reporters.

He immediately told reporters that:

“I don’t want to be here talking to you guys about having a problem with her,” he said resignedly. “I know that if that happens with Michael Annett or T.J. Bell, that we don’t stand here and have this conversation. It’s just like, ‘Man…’ I don’t want to have any problems with her. I don’t harness any ill will, you know?”

USA Today reports that Danica Patrick, when speaking about the incident, stated:

“We were all going gangbusters on the restart. The tires were so good, so you try and use them. I was racing the car in front of me (Sweet’s), and the car behind me (Hornish’s) is racing me.”

Patrick was careful not to place blame on any of the three drivers involved in the wreck, but did say on radio after the crash, “Shocker. Real shocker.” USA Today reports that Sam Hornish Jr. described the wreck by saying:

“Danica slid up off the bottom a little bit, I got underneath her to try to be able to get the pass done. I didn’t know there was another car on the outside of her. Now, in retrospect, I see why she was holding me down as far as she was.”

This is not the first time these two have been involved in an on-track incident either. Fox News reports that Hornish Jr. slid into Patrick  after blowing a tire at Talladega. Danica Patrick, thinking that he had purposefully run her into the wall, retaliated by intentionally crashing him on the cool-down lap. The former Indy car driver later called team owner Roger Penske to apologize.

Danica Patrick Gets The Worst Of Crash With Sam Hornish Jr. is a post from: The Inquisitr

Mark Martin won the pole for Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race with a lap time of 136.184 miles per hour, while Tony Stewart, last year’s Sprint Cup champion, was a close second at 136.126 mph. The rest of the top ten are as follows: 3–Regan Smith, 4–Jimmie Johnson, 5–Juan Montoya, 6–Ryan Newman, 7–Greg Biffle, 8–Kevin Harvick, 9–Joey Logano, 10–Kasey Kahne.

Mark Martin has raced in NASCAR’s top series since 1981–that’s over 30 years (almost half of his life) spent behind the wheel of a stock car. He has participated in 831 races, and won 51 poles (not including this week’s). Throughout his whole career, however, he has yet to win the Championship. Who knows, maybe this will be his year?

The green flag will fly at this week’s NASCAR venue, Phoenix International Raceway, on Sunday at 2:30pm Eastern Time. Following from last week’s crazy race, we will see if Danica Patrick will make it through the whole race in one piece, hope that Juan Montoya avoids all the track equipment, and that the weather cooperates (although with the expected temperature of 80 degrees, I think we will be just fine).

So, who do you think will win this weekend’s Sprint Cup Series race? Will it be Mark Martin, this week’s pole sitter, one of the Hencrick drivers (two of which are in the top ten), or someone else? Post your thoughts below.

Mark Martin On Top, Wins Pole for Phoenix Race is a post from: The Inquisitr

The Daytona 500 saw a few crashes last night. Matt Kenseth won the rain delayed race, but it was Juan Pablo Montoya that caused the the biggest spectacle.

Montoya’s No. 42 car spun out of control and crashed into the wall during the Daytona 500. But the crash was made even more crazy, dangerous, and fiery, due to the fact that Montoya crashed into a jet drier truck containing nearly 200 gallons of kerosene.

A giant fire ball lit up the sky at the Daytona International Speedway as gallons of fuel spilled out onto the track.

NESN reports that Montoya walked away from the crash unharmed as rescue crews rushed to the fire. The burning vehicles were eventually removed from the track and the Daytona 500 restarted for the second time.

The race, was supposed to start on Sunday at noon, finally finished up last night. Both Danica Patrick and Jimmy Johnson crashed out of the race as Matt Kenseth rode to victory. Kenseth said:

“To win the (qualifying race) and then to win the 500, as well, is certainly a lot more than I would have expected or really thought we were going to do. So it’s always special to win races. It’s really hard to win these races. The older you get and the more you race, you realize how hard it is, and you really try to enjoy all those moments.”

Here’s a video of Juan Pablo Montoya’s crash.

Did you watch the Daytona 500 last night?

Juan Pablo Montoya Crashes, Causes Big Fire at Daytona 500 [Video] is a post from: The Inquisitr

USA Today reports that the accident occurred just minutes after the green flag dropped Monday night when Patrick got cracked by five-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson after he’d been spun out by Elliott Sadler.

There was no way she could avoid the wreck – the third time in three races here this weekend she was involved in an accident that wasn’t her fault. Two other drivers – last year’s Daytona 500 champion Trevor Bayne and David Ragan – were involved in the wreck.

After the mishap, Patrick’s crew worked quickly to make extensive repairs to her battered car and get her back in the race.

“Any lap that I turn is progression, that’s for sure,” Patrick said. “That’s why I was so proud of everyone working hard _ and they were working hard to get me back on the track. There wasn’t much to gain as far as position-wise, but what there was to gain was for me to get the experience running out there.”

Upon her return, however, Danica was down 62 laps to the leaders and wound up finishing 38th in the race which was eventually won by Matt Kenseth.

Asked to reflect on her first Daytona 500, Patrick offered a bigger perspective.

“I kind of feel like I almost need to put the whole week in perspective; it’s just been up and down,” she said. “Everything from running good in the Duels to crashing on the last lap, to qualifying on the (Nationwide) pole, to running well in the Nationwide to crashing; and a lot of this stuff obviously is out of your control at times and that’s kind of the exciting time about Daytona and big tracks is that anything can happen and will happen as we’ve seen.

Check out Danica Patrick’s crash during the 2012 Daytona 500 in the video below:

via IBTimes

Danica Patrick Crashes Early, Finishes 38th in Daytona 500 [Video] is a post from: The Inquisitr

Danica Patrick suffered a rough crash yesterday during a preliminary round at the Daytona 500, but the GoDaddy.com driver bounced back to take the pole position for the DRIVE4COPD 300 Nationwide Series race. Patrick is the second woman in NASCAR history to take the pole position in one of the top three national series.

Shawna Robinson was the first to accomplish the feat in 1994 whenshe took the pole in a Nationwide Series race in Atlanta.

Patrick said:

“I don’t think about it from a girl perspective. It was about being the best driver, not the best girl.”

The New York Times reports that Patrick topped a field of 50 cars at the Daytona International Speedway. Patrick posted a lap time of 49.250 seconds to clock a speed of 182.741 miles per hour. Trevor Bayne, who won the Daytona 500 last year, finished in second.

Patrick’s pole position is surprising, not because she’s new to NASCAR, but because her primary car was destroyed in her crash yesterday. Patrick joked at the time that maybe it was a “blessing in disguise” and that maybe her backup car was really faster. Well, it looks like she may have been right.

Patrick said:

“I was thinking about how disappointing the end of the day was yesterday and how happy it can be 24 hours later. It was a good turn of events. It’s always good to have something that brings your spirits up.”

The pole position will give Patrick the top spot on the grid tomorrow, but it will also put a little more pressure on her shoulder. Patrick knows now that her car is fast enough to win, now it’s up to her to drive it to victory.

“I got much more nervous because I know my car is fast. And when you sit on the pole, you’re the fastest car. So if you don’t win the race, then I just wasted the fasted car. So yes, it adds a lot of pressure and now I feel nervous.”

Do you think Danica Patrick will be able to win tomorrow?

Danica Patrick Becomes Second Woman in NASCAR History To Take Pole Position is a post from: The Inquisitr

Danica Patrick didn’t have the best start at the Daytona 500. The NASCAR star was involved in a serious wreck during her qualifying race at the Daytona International Speedway in Florida.

Patrick walked away from the crash uninjured. Her car, on the other hand, didn’t fare so well.

Patrick said the crash was one of the roughest of her career. Patrick was running in a tight group when she made contact with another her car. Her Godaddy.com car spun out of control and crashed into a safety wall. Patrick told Yahoo Sports:

“I just got hit. “I was just running on the bottom lane and I’m betting it was just the chain reaction it looked like. Guys get so close on their side drafting; they’re touching you sometimes. So I’m sure in that situation it was hitting a side draft. It was just probably a chain reaction and I’ll go look [on TV] at it and see if I can fix something or change something that I’m doing out there.”

Patrick’s car was demolished and she’ll have to use a backup on Sunday for the Daytona 500. But Patrick is trying to stay hopeful, saying that the crash could be a “blessing in disguise” and that maybe her backup is faster than her primary car.

If the backup car doesn’t slow Patrick down, she’ll still have a hard time making it to the front during the Daytona 500. The crash means that Patrick will start near the back of the pack on Sunday. Patrick said:

“I’m just very disappointed the car crashed with two turns to go. It’s not how we wanted roll into Sunday. We wanted to just be cool, calm and collected with no damage. Maybe that backup car is fast. We weren’t super excited after qualifying. Maybe this is a blessing in big disguise.”

Do you think Danica Patrick has a chance during the Daytona 500?

Danica Patrick OK After Daytona 500 Crash is a post from: The Inquisitr

When the green flag drops during next Sunday’s Daytona 500 NASCAR race, Carl Edwards will lead the pack in his number 99 Ford, with Greg Biffle in the number 16 by his side. The NASCAR superstar won the pole with a qualifying lap of  194.738 mph in his No. 99 Ford, closely followed by Biffle’s lap of 194.087. Positions 3 through 43 will be determined by two Gatorade Duels, 150 mile long races that take place on Thursday, and will set the tone for Sunday’s race.

The Daytona 500 race is NASCAR’s biggest race of the season, held every year in February, at Daytona International Raceway, Daytona Beach, Florida. The race is attended by over 168,000 people each year, and tickets are very hard to come by. While the race is the opening of the NASCAR Sprint Cup season, it is considered to be the Superbowl of the NASCAR races.

The first race was held in 1959 on the beaches of Daytona, and was won by Lee Petty, whose winner’s purse was $19,050. Last year’s winner, Trevor Bayne, won an astonishing $1,462,563, not bad for the rookie’s first race in the prestigious series. With other winners, like Richard Petty, Mario Andretti, Dale Earnhardt, and Jeff Gordon, it is easy to see why so many drivers want this victory. Not only will they get their name on the wall, next to these greats, they also get a huge payoff, and the right to call themselves Champion of the Great American Race.

Among the usual qualifiers for the Daytona 500 race, such as Tony Stewart (last year’s Sprint Cup champion), Dale Earnhardt Junior, and Jeff Gordon, we will also see names like Trevor Bayne (last year’s 2011 Daytona winner) and Danica Patrick (known for her participation in the Indianapolis 500). With names like these, we are sure to see an exciting race.

Watch Carl Edwards’ Daytona 500 qualifying lap here:

Daytona 500 Pole goes to… is a post from: The Inquisitr

Danica Patrick announced today that she will not be racing in the Indianapolis 500 this year.

Patrick will race in the 2012 Coca-Cola 600 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway instead. The Coca-Cola 600 takes place the same day as the Indy 500.

USA Today reports that Danica announced her move to NASCAR last August. Patrick did say that she would return to the Indy 500 in the future and might even attempt to do an Indy 500 / Coca-Cola 600 double.

“I hope to do (the Indy 500) in the future. Maybe it’ll be a double. But at this point, after a lot of conversations, it’s just going to be the Coke 600. I think it’s going to be a big challenge, but I’m looking forward to it.”

Sprint Cup team owner Tony Stewart said that the decision to miss the Indy 500 was Patrick’s. Stewart said:

“We didn’t tell her she couldn’t run the 500. Obviously, she’s running the Nationwide car full time, and it’s a good weekend to get a lot of laps in the car… I’d say it was probably an easier decision for her to not do it because she’s running the Nationwide race. She’s got a lot of stuff going on. To run the Nationwide side and the Cup side would be really impossible.”

Danica Patrick has raced seven Indy 500s. She was the first woman to lead the race when she was a rookie in 2005. She earned her best result at the Indy 500 in 2009 when she finished third.

Are you a fan of Danica Patrick?

Danica Patrick Will Skip Indy 500 [Video] is a post from: The Inquisitr

Racing hottie and Go-Daddy spokeswoman Danica Patrick is good to go for her big Sprint Cup debut Feb. 26 at the Daytona 500. Well, at least she will be once she gets into the frame of mind of the infamous honey badger.

“And the honey badger, it was last year, I think, somebody showed me this video of the honey badger, and the commentator on it was very, very funny,” Patrick said Thursday. “Anyway, the honey badger, he doesn’t give a crap, he takes what he wants. And that’s how I’m going to be this year, like a honey badger. But I feel like it’s a little diluted with the football player that has the honey badger nickname, too. He’s No. 7, as well.”

She’s talking about LSU cornerback Tyrann Mathieu, whose association to the honey badger wasn’t enough to keep him from losing 21-0 to Alabama on Monday night’s BCS title game.

“I bet he’s not feeling like a honey badger. I bet — anyway, the video is great,” Patrick said. “He eats a poisonous snake and he falls asleep and wakes right back up. The video is funny, so I encourage you all to watch that. I think Randall something is the commentator or the name on the YouTube video.”

She went on to say:

“I don’t know, it’s a mindset. I even have a honey badger picture on my screen saver on my phone to inspire me. It takes what it wants.”

She may be late to the viral/meme phenom, but she’s going to need all the positive thinking she can get. She’s got 10 races on her schedule in the Sprint Cup Series and a full schedule in the Nationwide Series. She did alright in the July Nationwide race, leading laps and finishing 10th – and crashing across the finish line.

She’s still hot though.

Do you think the honey badger will come through for Danica Patrick?

Danica Patrick Takes Up “Honey Badger” Strategy For Upcoming Races is a post from: The Inquisitr

Race car driver Danica Patrick sat down with Sports Illustrated to discuss the newest phase of her career, summing her direction up in a single sentence: “Starting Tuesday morning it’s all NASCAR, all day.”

29-year-old Patrick spoke with the mag Friday, just before the racing death of fellow driver Dan Wheldon and had not commented on the tragedy. But she did have a lot to say about her move from IndyCar to NASCAR, beginning with a response to IndyCar team owner Michael Andretti’s comments that Patrick’s NASCAR switch “wasn’t doing either side justice.” Patrick countered:

“First and foremost I wouldn’t say that doing both ever interfered with IndyCar because I still had 100 percent dedication for all the things that I needed to do with IndyCar. Anything that wasn’t expected wasn’t because of NASCAR, that’s for sure. In fact, I think NASCAR helped me break down the elements of IndyCar easier because an IndyCar has so much grip you have to think about the corner in its right order to make changes.”

On the subject of getting a place in North Carolina like other NASCAR racers, Patrick says she plans to plane-it to her races. She adds:

“I’m happy to fly wherever I need to go. I don’t need any more houses than I already have. Tony Stewart lives in Indiana and his shop is in North Carolina. I will see the team 34 weekends a year. I’ll see them more than my own houses.”

Of revised goals, the racer says:

“My goal is to win in Nationwide. Top-five in the championship would really be good. Of course, I would really like to win it. With my style of consistency that could help out. The longer the season, the more that will help.”

Patrick added that she also hopes to return to the Indianapolis 500 in 2012, but that there was no deal in place for her to do so as of yet.

Danica Patrick Talks About NASCAR Plans is a post from: The Inquisitr

Danica Patrick is used to driving her Indycar in excess of 200 mph around circuits like the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. But her final laps as an Indycar racer were driven more like a funeral procession. After Dan Wheldon’s fatal crash yesterday at the Indy 300, Danica, and the rest of the Indycar 300 grid, put in the final five laps of her Indycar career to honor her fellow competitor.

While workers were cleaning up the crash, Danica said:

“It was like a movie scene which they try to make as gnarly as possible. It was debris everywhere across the whole track, you could smell the smoke, you could see the billowing smoke on the back straight from the car. There was a chunk of fire that we were driving around. You could see cars scattered. I hope everyone is OK.”

Danica wasn’t the most successful rider in Indycar history, but she was one of the most popular. Danica was named the most popular Indycar rider for the last six years. She is the only woman to ever win an Indycar race (she won in 2008 in Japan) and was named rookie of the year in 2005.

Michael Andretti, one of Indycar’s most successful drivers with 36 winds and three championships, told ESPN:

“Danica did bring, I think, new fans to our sport and hopefully those fans aren’t here only because of Danica. “I’m sure she brought fans that normally wouldn’t have watched it but now have become fans of IndyCar racing.”

Patrick will now focus on racing full-time in the NASCAR Nationwide Series.

Do you think Danica Patrick is making the right decision to leave Indycar racing?

Danica Patrick’s Final Indycar Laps a Somber Tribute to Dan Wheldon is a post from: The Inquisitr

Racing hottie Danica Patrick has put racing aside for a bit and headed to Washington.

The NASCAR rockstar admitted a passing knowledge of civics (joking she didn’t fare well in school on “[her] Constitution test”), but the racer has been using her acclaim and fanbase to draw some attention to a cause she believes doesn’t get enough press. While breast cancer generally claims the month of October when raising funds, selling ‘awareness’ items and generally getting a higher profile is concerned, Patrick hopes some lawmakers will assist her in shining a light on the condition COPD.

COPD, or Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, is often caused or exacerbated by smoking. It is the fourth leading cause of death in the US, and the only cause of death in the upper five for which the prevalence is rising- a scary thought. But for Danica Patrick, the reasons are also personal. Patrick’s own grandmother died of COPD, and in an interview with ABC, the race star says she hopes to speak for families who have suffered the same loss:

“I’m just here to use my platform as who I am, and obviously with my experience with it, to relate to those who do suffer from someone in their family having COPD — to try and urge them to do something about it.”

Patrick concedes she does not know specifically what Congress should do to combat the disease- she notes that half of all sufferers do not know they have COPD- but says that awareness of the illness is a good first step:

“I don’t know what government needs to do about it. But the bottom line is is that pure awareness is going to be enough to do something about this disease and change its statistics.”

November is COPD Awareness Month in the US.

Danica Patrick Explores the ‘Racier’ Side of Washington, Seeks Awareness is a post from: The Inquisitr

Danica Patrick is coming to NASCAR. It looks like the long rumored switch for the most famous female racing star to NASCAR is actually going to happen. Sources, who want to stay anonymous because the deal has yet to be finalized, are telling the AP that Danica will switch from open wheel Indy cars to closed wheel cars and the JR motorsports Nationwide Series team (owned by Dale Earnhardt Jr.). It looks like Danica will run a full Nationwide series schedule in 2012, and run selected NASCAR Sprint Cup series events in a car owned by Tony Stewart. These sources also say even though she will be a NASCAR racer there is an opportunity for her to race in next year’s Indy 500.

Danica is likely making this move  for a number of reasons. First is there is more money in NASCAR. It is a far more watched sport in America, the largest TV market in the world, and that means she can expose many more people to her sponsors and her own personal brand. NASCAR runs more events even in the Nationwide series (which is like Triple A ball for the NASCAR impaired out there) than the Izod Indy Car series runs, and of course the NASCAR Sprint Cup series is the largest, and most viewed, motor sports series in North America. It looks like Tony Stewart will run a third car, he owns his car and the #39 of Ryan Newman under the Stewart-Haas banner, and we have to wonder if that is not a ride being created for Danica’s eventual shift to full time Sprint Cup racing.

Danica has 19 Nationwide series starts under her belt right now, and in that time has run ok. She has just one top five finish, and three top ten finishes. She has run up front at times, but all of that will change when she makes the jump fulltime.

Danica Patrick close to a deal to move to NASCAR is a post from: The Inquisitr

After finishing 10th in the Indy 500, and leading laps late in the race the constant Danica Patrick to NASCAR rumors will not go away. In fact it seems each and every day new rumors come out that Danica Is NASCAR bound in 2012. This time Godaddy.com CEO Bob Parsons is the one fueling the rumors. He fully expects Danica to make the jump in 2012 and that his company will continue to sponsor her.

Said Parsons:

She hasn’t told me she will, but I believe she will and we’ll be ready. Here’s the fact: She loves NASCAR, it’s much more exciting than Indy Car, with all due respect, and the TV audience for NASCAR is off the hook.

Those are pretty strong words coming from the guy who makes Danica’s ability to run the car a reality. However, we have to look at where Danica would fit in the garage of NASCAR. Without a doubt she would need a least one full year in the Nationwide Series and it seems she could expand her par time ride at JR Motorsports into a full time ride in 2012, but a cup ride may be a little harder to come by.

Since NASCAR team owners are capped at owning four teams we can rule out a few teams already. Roush Fenway Racing is locked in long term with most of their drivers; the same could be said about Hendrick Motorsports. Stewart-Haas racing and Joe Gibbs racing both have room for team expansion, and of the two it would seem that Stewart Haas would be the favorite. Tony Stewart, team owner, has mentored Danica on her entry into NASCAR and is a converted open wheel racer himself.

Go Daddy CEO expects Danica to switch to NASCAR is a post from: The Inquisitr

The basic plot of the 2009 NASCAR Racing season was one filled with falling attendance, poor TV ratings, and a step back for a sport that once looked to be ready to take on all comers save the NFL. Fans were unhappy with the new version of the NASCAR race car, bored with the dominance of four time champion Jimmie Johnson, and finding other ways to spend their Sunday afternoons. Now with Danica Patrick running in their second tier Nationwide Series, and several very close exciting races in the lead up to the Daytona 500, it seems that NASCAR has fixed some of the things that were wrong.

There have been several rule changes for the 2010 NASCAR season. The most important of which has not even happened yet. It seems NASCAR will do away with the wing on the back of their COT car platform, and go back to a more traditional looking car with a spoiler on the rear end. They have tweaked the aero dynamics for the cars for the Daytona race, and given the cars a bigger restrictor plate.

The net effect of those changes has been several closely contested, races in Speed weeks, the collection of races leading up the season opening Daytona 500. On Thursday the two Daytona 500 qualifying races were each one by a combined distance of less than three feet. The racing has been fast and furious, Danica mania has hit NASCAR, and fans are flocking back to the sport.

Related Links:

•NASCAR Complete.com

Has NASCAR found the cure for its ills? is a post from: The Inquisitr

As with everything else Danica, her debut in stock car racing was a lot of hype, what was actually surprising is she can actually drive. As a casual fan of pen wheel racing I of course know who Danica is, but before today I can honestly say that I have never seen her drive a complete race, well maybe last year’s Indy 500, but I have to say I was impressed.

Usually I am the type who thinks the media is pretty stupid, and they over hype, the wrong people. While there was a Danica media feeding frenzy centered on everything she did, during the actual race, she handled herself pretty well. For the most part she ran in the top ten, and she was clearly out there to learn and I think learn she did. After a mid race spin she rallied to finish 6th, and in the grand scheme of things that is probably a lot better result than most of us thought she was capable of.

However, with all that being said I do not believe that she should race in next week’s Nationwide Series race. Daytona is a  tough track to master, even more so with 42 other driver surrounding you and fighting for very small pieces of real estate. While I think Danica did a fine job in the ARCA race, the talent level in the Nationwide series is easily four of five times better. The simple fact here is she does not have enough experience or know how to race in next week’s Nationwide series race, without causing someone a significant issue.

That is not to say that she will not get all that one day, but that day is not going to be any one of the next seven. A great plan for her would be to enter the Nationwide series race in California two weeks from today, and learn what NASCAR racing is really all about. Daytona is a completely different animal compared to what NASCAR drivers do during the rest of their season.

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Danica Patrick makes her stock car racing debut is a post from: The Inquisitr

It seems more and more likely that Danica Patrick will be involved in the world of NASCAR come 2010. After taking the time to visit Tony Stewart and his Stewart-Haas Race Shops several times over the last few months it seems Danica is ready to follow Stewart on a similar path to the world of NASCAR.

IRL fans should relax as it seems that Danica will race a full time IRL entry in 2010, but her off weekends and such are apparently going to be filled with a lot more racing in other kinds of cars. It seems that Tony will field a car for Danica in many different forms of NASCAR racing for 2010.

What the likely means is Danica will be in an ARCA car for the Speed Weeks race in Daytona next February, and look for her to make NASCAR starts in both the Truck and Nationwide series on the many different kinds of tracks NASCAR runs on. While this is a move to get Danica some much needed experience in Stock Cars, it is also a move to help her get a NASCAR license. NASCAR does not allow just any one to drive at Daytona and Talladega, usually a driver has to prove they can handle that in an ARCA car before they are allowed to attempt it in a Truck or Nationwide series car.

Since Stewart himself does not operate a Truck or Nationwide series team, a third party will be brought in to build and maintain the cars he will field for Danica. Most likely that third party will be Kevin Harvick Inc. who fields teams in both series and whose owners happen to be close friends of Stewart.

Danica Patrick headed to NASCAR, sort of is a post from: The Inquisitr