Danica Patrick is one of the biggest stars in NASCAR, at least in terms of endorsement deals. Wins is a different matter entirely.
Measured by Sprint Cup victories, the second-year driver has struggled in her first two seasons. After winning the pole at the 2013 Daytona 500 and earning a top 10 finish in the race, Patrick has failed to live up to the fast start. In the 44 races since then, she has failed to land in the top 10 once and has six races she was unable to finish.
Patrick’s average finish in her first two seasons is 27.
But her struggles on the track have not stopped advertisers from jumping on board with Danica Patrick. She recently picked up an endorsement from Can-Am Spyder, participating in the launch of several video vignettes and social media contests including a newly released spot featuring Aerosmith rocker Steven Tyler.
Danica also remains the face of domain-naming company GoDaddy, and is seen as a big part of the company’s strategy as it moves toward going public.
GoDaddy has recently shifted its strategy regarding Danica Patrick under new CEO Blake Irving. While GoDaddy once focused on her sex appeal, the company is now placing a greater emphasis on using Danica to celebrate ambition , a message that resonates with its core clientele of small businesses.
“It’s like we’ve gone to a mature content phase,” Danica told USA Today Sports . “As opposed to high heels, it’s business jackets. As opposed to walking down the red carpet and answering who I’m excited to see tonight, it’s more about talking about inspiring women, and working on my brand attributes, and what do I stand for … it’s a lot more original content. It’s fun.”
Danica Patrick continues to struggle on the track, however. At Saturday’s NASCAR Toyota Owners 400 she made headlines simply for finishing the race after talking about her difficulty competing on the track in Richmond. She avoided trouble on the track on Saturday, but could only manage a 34th place finish.
